Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the economic (a) merits and (b) drawbacks to the Chagossian people of sustainable development in the Chagos Islands.

Other than the joint UK/US military base on Diego Garcia, the British Indian Ocean Territory / Chagos Archipelago is uninhabited. The issue of resettlement forms part of the ongoing sovereignty negotiations with Mauritius; we cannot provide detail on the content of the discussions or speculate on possible outcomes. Both the UK and Mauritius have expressed their commitment to the protection of the marine environment in the Indian Ocean. The UK Government remains committed to supporting Chagossians wherever they live through the Chagossian Support Package.