Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 10 June 2025 to Question 56763 on Chagosssians: Finance, from which line from his Department's budget the Chagossian Trust Fund will be resourced; when the implementation discussions will commence; what discussions he has had with his Mauritian counterparts on the Committee they are establishing to oversee the implementation of projects for the Chagos Archipelago; and what engagement he plans to have with the Chagossian community in Britain on the Trust Fund.

We recognise the importance of the islands to Chagossians and have worked to ensure the agreement reflects this. We will increase our support to Chagossians, including through the establishment of a £40 million trust fund. The UK Government regularly engages with Chagossian groups and representatives at both official and Ministerial levels. The Foreign Secretary and I met Chagossian groups on 22 May 2025. We continue to have regular dialogue with Mauritius on a range of Treaty-related issues including the Chagossian Trust Fund. We will not provide a running commentary on continued engagement. As we have previously stated the costs associated with the deal will be split between the Ministry of Defence and the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office.