Diego Garcia: Comments by the President of the United States

Lord Purvis of Tweed Excerpts

Thursday 22nd January 2026 Lords Chamber

[Lord Purvis of Tweed (LD)]

If the reporting is correct, the leader of His Majesty’s loyal Opposition asked the House Speaker Johnson to ask President Trump to change his position on the treaty—I heard a “Good for her!” to my right. Does the Minister agree that it is the British Parliament that should hold the British Government to account, not a foreign state? Furthermore, does the Minister agree that, in this House, we must focus on Chagossian rights, which have been denied them for a generation, and value for money for the British taxpayer—and not pander to President Trump and ask him to intervene in British politics?

[Baroness Chapman of Darlington (Lab)]

I know the noble Lord does not always want me to be nice to him on the Floor of the House, but I must say that the Liberal Democrats, much as they have had their issues with this agreement, have always been focused on the rights of the Chagossian communities and have put that case clearly and consistently. I respect the way that they have gone about this. What we have not seen is any attempt to undermine the position regarding the sovereignty of Greenland or to leverage other issues that fundamentally undermine NATO and the security of the Arctic region. Sadly, that is what we are seeing from others. I agree with the noble Lord about the sovereignty of this Parliament and commend him for the consistency with which he has approached this issue.