TRUSTPOLITICS
L

Lord Callanan (Con)

Speaking in the House of Lords on 5 January 2026

Debate

Diego Garcia Military Base and British Indian Ocean Territory Bill

Contribution

My Lords, I will briefly move Amendment 3 in my name. I will also speak about the other amendments in my name in this group, but I will not seek to pre-empt the arguments of the noble Lord, Lord Faulks, when he gets around to proposing his amendments. The ocean around the Chagos Islands is a uniquely rich and biodiverse environment. It is home to the UK’s greatest marine biodiversity, with unique species, major sea-bird populations and healthy reefs. As the custodians of that biodiversity, the UK has a proud record of increasing marine biodiversity. I know the Government have ambitions to continue that record, which we support. But by transferring sovereignty of the Chagos Archipelago to the Mauritian Government, Ministers are putting the future of that MPA in an uncertain position. Yes, the treaty provides for Mauritius to maintain the MPA, but what tools do the Mauritian Government have at their disposal to discharge those responsibilities? I do not doubt their commitment, but I doubt their ability to actually enforce it.
← Previous speaker
In this debate
Next speaker →
In this debate

More from Lord Callanan (Con)

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.

Partner sites