Yasine Mohabuth
Port Louis, Mauritius

Image source, Yasine Mohabuth

As we reported earlier, today's deal gives Mauritius control over the Chagos Islands and allows them to resettle the land - although not Diego Garcia, home to the UK-US military base.

In an emotional scene at the Chagos Refugees Group headquarters in Pointe aux Sables, near Port Louis, dozens of Chagossians gathered to celebrate the g of the UK-Mauritius deal.

There were tears of joy, firecrackers lit the air, and accolades were exchanged. One elderly woman, overcome with emotion, whispered: "Now I can finally go there… and die in peace."

Olivier Bancoult, leader of the Chagos Refugees Group, hailed it as "a historic day for us".

"For years, talking to our children about Chagos felt like telling them a story about a place we never truly knew. Today, they will finally be able to walk the land of their ancestors."

Barrister Hisham Oozeer told the BBC the deal is a "win-win" - affirming Mauritius’ sovereignty over the Chagos Archipelago, including Diego Garcia, while maintaining the security concerns of the UK and US.

"But at least after more than 50 years today Mauritius is fully independent and all Mauritians reunited. Today we have on one side the sovereignty of Mauritius over the Chagos Islands being confirmed, and also the safety element, which was important for UK and USA, being preserved."

Covilen Narsinghen, president of the Mauritius Global Diaspora, called it a landmark moment - completing Mauritius’ decolonisation and reuniting all Mauritians under one sovereign flag.

Image source, EPA

It has been a day that has seen injunctions, High Court hearings, and the UK handing over British territory to Mauritius. Here's how it unfolded:

• 02:25 BST: With the deal expected to be signed on Thursday, Mr Justice Goose grants "interim relief" to two Chagossian women who brought a case against the Foreign Office
• Around 12:40 BST: In the High Court, Mr Justice Chamberlain discharges the injunction - meaning the deal can be signed this afternoon

• 15:10 BST: Prime Minister Keir Starmer confirms the deal has been signed. Alongside Gen Jim Hockenhull and Defence Secretary John Healey, he gives a news conference, selling what he sees at the benefits. At around the same time, we learn the lease of the Diego Garcia military base will cost an average of £101m per year to lease, with other costs agreed as well

• 17:00 BST: Healey gives a statement to Parliament, insisting the deal is crucial for the UK's security. But the Conservatives' James Cartlidge says it's an "abject surrender" and a "negotiating failure".

We're closing our live coverage soon. Our final post of the day will come from Yasine Mohabuth in Port Louis, Mauritius. Thanks for reading.

Alice Cuddy
International reporter

Diego Garcia, the remote Chagos island that hosts a UK-US military base, is at the centre of today's deal. It is also one of the most secretive places on Earth.

There are no commercial flights and to enter you need a permit - only granted to people with connections to the military facility, or the British authority. Journalists have historically been barred.

But last year, I gained unprecedented access. For my five days on the island, I was placed under stringent restrictions.

So what is it like?

Diego Garcia is a paradise of lush vegetation and pristine white-sand beaches, surrounded by crystal blue waters.

There are also clues there pointing to the population that was forced from the island, including an abandoned plantation where buildings stand in disrepair.

US and UK influences on Diego Garcia jostle for predominance. There are British police cars, a nightclub called the Brit Club, and roads with names like Britannia Way.

But cars drive on the right, as they do in the US, the dollar is the accepted currency, and the electricity sockets are American.

There are also constant reminders of the sensitive base located there. Military drills can be heard early in the mornings, we buildings like armouries, and see military aircraft. But there is much that is off limits.

READ MORE: What is on the secretive tropical island of Diego Garcia?

Further to our previous post from Jack Fenwick, here is a breakdown of the costs of the Chagos deal, via the PA Media news agency. Under the deal:

• The UK will pay £165 million in each of the first three years
• From years four to 13 it will pay £120 million, after which payments will be indexed to inflation until the end of the deal
• An annual grant of £45 million for 25 years will begin in the fourth year to Mauritian development, with British firms involved "to the maximum extent practicable"
• A £40 million payment will set up a trust fund for Chagossians

Jack Fenwick
Political correspondent

Now we've left the Commons, let's go back to the costs of the deal.

The UK government says the 99-year deal to lease back Diego Garcia will cost the UK £101m a year. They say that means the total costs for the deal will be £3.4bn.

A senior Ministry of Defence source says the £101m is the average amount the UK will pay in each of the 99 years that the deal covers.

They say the £3.4bn figure represents the total costs in today’s money, when you for issues such as inflation.

Under the of the deal, the earlier payments will be worth more, with the UK set to pay £165m to Mauritius this year (see our earlier post from Yasine Mohabuth in Port Louis).

Due to inflation, by the end of the 99-year deal, the amount the UK is paying will be worth far less in real-.

Liberal Democrat James MacCleary says his party s the UK complying with international law - but describes the process of handing the Chagos Islands to Mauritius as "bumpy".

He says it was "clear that the government was prepared to give Donald Trump" veto powers over an agreement, "without regard" for Chagossian priorities.

Now that a deal has been reached, he asks, how has the government responded to their concerns and priorities?

Healey responds by saying that the government kept the US informed about the treaty, but never offered Washington a veto over it.

We're moving away from text coverage of the Commons, but we'll still be carrying questions to Healey in our live stream - watch live at the top of the page.

Healey is back on his feet, and responds to Cartlidge's anger about being associated with China and Russia.

The prime minister was making a "simple point", Healey explains, that if the base goes, the countries that benefit are China, Russia and Iran.

"Quite simply he was asking, whose side of the argument are you on">Mauritius Prime Minister Dr Navin Ramgoolam has hailed the deal over the Chagos archipelago as a "great victory for the Mauritian nation", saying that 60 years after independence, "the United Kingdom must now return our full sovereignty".

Speaking with visible emotion, Ramgoolam reaffirmed his long-standing position.

"I have always said we must obtain our sovereignty over the totality of the Chagos, including Diego Garcia."

He described this development as the final step in completing Mauritius’ decolonisation, which began with independence in 1968.

"What we want is absolute sovereignty without compromise or ambiguity," Ramgoolam stated. "The Chagossians must be able to live once again on their islands."

Negotiations between Mauritius and the UK have also included discussions around financial reparations (see our earlier post).

Mauritius will receive £165 million through a front-loading agreement, which amounts to over 10 billion Mauritian rupees annually for the next 28 years.

(Our 17:49 post has more details on the costs of the deal).

In addition, a £40 million trust fund has been agreed upon, but Ramgoolam argued that this must go further.

"The is for a 99-year period but in contrary to what was agreed by the former government the extension of 40 years must be agreed upon by both sides."

Ramgoolam spoke of a Strategic Partnership Framework with the UK, one based on "mutual respect" and shared development goals.

He noted that both India and the United States had signalled for the evolving agreement, which could reshape the strategic landscape of the Indian Ocean region.

Image source, Getty Images

Image source, Getty Images

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio says he "welcomes" the agreement between the UK and Mauritius.

"This agreement secures the long-term, stable and effective operation of the t US-UK military facility at Diego Garcia, which is critical to regional and global security," he writes on X.

"We value both parties' dedication. The US looks forward to our continued t work to ensure the success of our shared operations."

Jack Fenwick
Political correspondent

Many of those opposed to this deal have voiced concerns about what this could mean for the UK's security.

They say that the close ties between Mauritius and China would put the UK's interests at risk.

Today, the prime minister took that argument head on.

He said that without this deal, the UK would be unable to "prevent China or any other nation setting up their own bases on the outer islands".

That was a scenario that he said "no responsible government" would allow to happen.

The prime minister said that the nations who wanted this deal to collapse included China, Russia and Iran - and he accused Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch and Reform UK leader Nigel Farage of being "in this column" when it comes to the issue of Chagos.

Image source, UK government

The deal handing over the Chagos Islands from the UK to Mauritius has been published, external - it includes details of more UK funding for Mauritius, on top of the £101m annual cost to lease the Diego Garcia base. Here are some extracts:

• Mauritius is sovereign over the Chagos Archipelago in its entirety, including Diego Garcia
• The United Kingdom shall have full responsibility for the defence and security of Diego Garcia
• Mauritius is free to implement a programme of resettlement on the islands of the Chagos Archipelago other than Diego Garcia
• The United Kingdom agrees: to pay Mauritius an annual sum; to capitalise a Trust Fund for the benefit of Chagossians as established by Mauritius; to grant multi-year funding as part of a development framework for projects to be undertaken by Mauritius across 25 years
• The arrangements for such payments, including amounts and modalities, shall be agreed separately
• This agreement shall have a duration of 99 years...this agreement may be extended for a further 40 years

Government says deal will secure Diego Garcia and boost diplomatic published at 16:09 British Summer Time 22 May

16:09 BST 22 May

James Landale
Diplomatic correspondent

Critics of the Chagos deal are clear: the government should not give up British territory at what they see as huge cost to the taxpayer and a weakening of our security. So why has the UK government taken this decision?

Put simply, it believed the military base at Diego Garcia would otherwise become unworkable. Ministers feared an “advisory opinion” by the UN’s International Court of Justice - that the Chagos Islands belonged to Mauritius - would soon become a legally binding judgement by a special tribunal that governs international laws of the sea.

In such a case, they argue Diego Garcia’s satellite communications would be threatened because the UK relies on a UN authority to get access to a particular electromagnetic spectrum.

They say contractors would refuse to visit the isolated base - to make repairs or deliver supplies - for fear of being sued. The ability to fly in and out might be challenged by international rules that govern our skies.

Without the deal, officials say, there would be no legal ban preventing Mauritius allowing a foreign power such as China to establish a military or other presence in the islands.

Without the UK’s annual payment, they argue, Mauritius would have a financial incentive to open the islands up to Chinese investment.

More broadly, with a deal, the UK government can continue to criticise Chinese aggression in the South China Sea without facing accusations of hypocrisy.

The UK can also avoid losing further diplomatic across the world which overwhelmingly thought the islands belonged to Mauritius.