Seema Malhotra

Seema Malhotra

Labour (Co-op) — Feltham and Heston

Speaking in the House of Commons on 28 January 2026

Debate

British Indian Ocean Territory

Contribution

The right hon. Member could not have known it, but I was on the first line of a page of comments on that exact issue. I am sorry that he chose that moment to interrupt proceedings. As I was saying, it is a matter of long-standing policy that we do not comment on operational procedures. The Conservatives know that and, of course, took the same approach in government. As the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, my hon. Friend the Member for Cardiff South and Penarth, told the Foreign Affairs Committee: “We are confident that nothing in this treaty conflicts with our abilities to uphold international law, and to continue to operate the base as we do today.” As Lord Coaker has—

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