Stephen Doughty

Stephen Doughty

Labour (Co-op) — Cardiff South and Penarth

Speaking in the House of Commons on 2 April 2025

Debate

British Indian Ocean Territory

Contribution

There does appear to be some confusion about the different legal judgments among the Opposition, as I can hear from the chuntering. There are a number of ways in which the operation of the base was not sustainable. We are very clear that without a deal—as the previous Government recognised—we would face serious, real-world operational impacts on the base that would erode our ability to operate key frequencies vital for our own communications and to counter hostile states, affecting everything from overflight clearances to securing contractors, with consequential rocketing costs, declining investment and a degraded facility. We were not willing to take that risk, and have therefore secured this base for our security and that of our allies.

More from Stephen Doughty

Other recent Hansard contributions by the same speaker.

About Hansard

Hansard is the official verbatim record of proceedings in the UK Parliament. Every word spoken in the Commons and Lords is recorded and published — this page is a single contribution from that record.

For Stephen Doughty's full parliamentary record including voting history, expenses and all other contributions, see the Stephen Doughty report card.