CONSERVATIVE
New Forest East

DEFENCE – CHAGOS ISLANDS - 08 September 2025

DEFENCE – CHAGOS ISLANDS - 08 September 2025

Sir Julian Lewis: The Defence Secretary says that the Chagos giveaway will amount to no more than 0.2% of our defence budget. Does that not suggest the cost of the Chagos giveaway will in fact come out of the defence budget?

[The Secretary of State for Defence (John Healey): On the contrary, both the Foreign Secretary and I have been consistent that, taken across the range, the cost of the settlement with Mauritius for Diego Garcia is split between the Ministry of Defence and the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office. For defence, our commitment is less than 0.2% of the defence budget. That is a good investment for this country, and it gives us a sovereign right to operate that base with the Americans for the next 99 years.]