A High Court judge has issued a temporary ban preventing Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer from signing a controversial agreement to transfer sovereignty of the Chagos Islands to Mauritius.
The last-minute court ruling has thrown Labour’s proposed deal into uncertainty and sparked a political backlash.
Starmer was due to attend a virtual signing ceremony confirming the handover of the British Indian Ocean Territory.
However, the court’s intervention—delivered just before 2:30am on Thursday—has barred the Government from proceeding until a further hearing takes place.
Mr Justice Goose issued an order halting any legally binding steps towards transferring control of the Chagos Archipelago. The ruling specifically prohibits the UK from disposing of any part of the territory or binding itself to any transfer terms, maintaining British jurisdiction for now.
The legal challenge was brought by Bertrice Pompe, a native Chagossian who was forcibly displaced in the 1970s. Pompe has argued that the proposed deal threatens her right to return home and could expose her to discrimination, as she holds only British citizenship and not Mauritian nationality.
Mauritius was reportedly unprepared for the legal challenge. A senior official told The Telegraph that they were assessing the situation and awaiting further information from London. The Ministry of Defence was also forced to cancel a planned event coinciding with the signing.
The proposed deal includes a 99-year lease for the Diego Garcia military base, which the UK and US currently share. Critics say the handover would mark the first major loss of British territory since Hong Kong in 1997 and could cost taxpayers around £9 billion.
Shadow Foreign Secretary Dame Priti Patel called the court ruling a humiliation for the Labour government, stating the deal is harmful to UK defence interests, taxpayers, and displaced Chagossians. Shadow Justice Secretary Robert Jenrick echoed these concerns, warning that the agreement would benefit geopolitical rivals like China.
Nigel Farage also criticised the deal, claiming Starmer is needlessly surrendering British territory and risking national security. He noted that Mauritius has never held sovereign control of the islands and highlighted growing concerns over its ties with China and Russia.
Chagossians have long demanded the right to return to their homeland. A rally led by members of the community took place outside the Foreign Office and the High Court on Thursday morning, calling for transparency and fair treatment.
The Friends of the British Overseas Territories campaign welcomed the court ruling, urging the Government to halt the deal and involve Chagossians directly in negotiations.
Foreign Secretary David Lammy previously defended the agreement, citing international legal pressure and a UN ruling that deemed British control of the islands unlawful. While the United Nations has called for their return to Mauritius, the UK Government faces criticism for excluding displaced islanders from the process.
The Liberal Democrats, Conservatives, and Reform UK have all expressed opposition to the deal, with many branding it a threat to national security and a betrayal of British citizens.
Although the Foreign Office has declined to comment on the ongoing legal case, it maintains that the agreement is necessary to safeguard UK interests.
