Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent discussions his Department has had with Chagossians living in the UK on self-determination for the people of the Chagos Islands.

The negotiations were between the UK and Mauritius with our priority being to secure the full operation of the base on Diego Garcia. However, we recognise the importance of the islands to Chagossians as well as the different views within the Chagossian community on their future.   We regularly engage with members of the Chagossian community on a range of issues and will continue to do so. Last month, the Foreign Secretary and I met with representatives of the Chagossian community, as part of the Foreign, Commonwealth, Development Office's ongoing engagement with Chagossians around the deal.