JUDICIAL FAIRYTALE STUNS GOVERNMENT HOURS BEFORE UK SIGNS CONTROVERSIAL CHAGOS DEAL

In an extraordinary overnight development, the High Court of Justice has, for the first time in English legal history, paused the signing of an international treaty—just hours before it was due to be concluded.

Following a marathon five-hour emergency session, The Honourable Mr Justice Goose delivered a stunning ruling shortly before 3am, blocking Prime Minister Keir Starmer and Foreign Secretary David Lammy from taking any steps to transfer the British Indian Ocean Territory to Mauritius.

The Chagos treaty, which had been scheduled for signature today, is now paused by emergency order, pending the full consideration of the legal challenge brought by Bertrice Pompe, who is seeking to prevent the treaty from being concluded.

Ms Pompe, the claimant, was represented by Philip Rule KC, leading Michael Polak, and instructed by Stuart Luke of Luke and Bridger Law. The Government was represented by William Irwin and John Bethell. A special mention is due to Toby Noskwith, a key organiser and campaign coordinator who has worked on this since the start, and to the Great British PAC which assisted greatly through the course of yesterday’s events. 

Ms Pompe, who initiated this emergency legal challenge, argues that the treaty would cause irreparable harm and violate fundamental legal and human rights principles. She is a Chagossian, born on Diego Garcia and expelled at six months old. She grew up in the Seychelles and now lives in London. A British national, Ms Pompe—like thousands of Chagossians from the Seychelles and elsewhere—stands to gain nothing from the deal with Mauritius unless she applies for Mauritian citizenship.

A further hearing is scheduled for 10:30am today at the High Court. The treaty cannot proceed until Ms Pompe’s judicial review is heard in full. The Court has now forcibly restrained the Government, which must defend against claims including grave breaches of due process, racial persecution, human rights violations, and irrational governance.

This legal defeat is being described as a historic humiliation for the Government and a rare judicial intervention in foreign affairs—an arena typically governed by executive prerogative. The decision signals just how deeply flawed the Chagos negotiations are perceived to be.

The dramatic intervention followed a last-minute leak by the Government on Tuesday night, revealing plans to sign the treaty on Thursday—despite widespread belief the deal had been abandoned. This triggered a high-stakes legal race against time: Ms Pompe, her legal team, and allied campaigners worked without pause to file an “out of hours” urgent application for interim relief, seeking to freeze the deal until judicial scrutiny could occur.

The team, acutely aware the treaty might be signed at any moment, launched a last-ditch effort to ask the High Court to intervene before the Chagossians’ homeland was irreversibly transferred.

What followed was an intense courtroom battle. Mr Justice Goose, initially sceptical, was ultimately persuaded after hours of argument to take the extraordinary step of pausing a treaty—an outcome almost unheard of in British legal history. Observers have described the hearing as a feat of perseverance, creativity, and determination from the legal team.

Meanwhile, Government lawyers fought into the early hours with growing desperation, trying to keep the deal alive. Their failure has culminated in a catastrophic political setback. The Governments of the UK and Mauritius, who had prepared an elaborate virtual signing ceremony, have been forced to scrap their plans—or risk defying British law.

The UK Government’s effort to push through the deal ahead of an expected firestorm in Parliament—where MPs will soon vote on deep cuts to welfare and social security—has backfired. The optics of this decision, juxtaposed against domestic austerity, have already triggered public outrage.

The treaty’s £9 billion price tag—reportedly front-loaded in payments—has been criticised as a vast transfer of British funds to a deeply corrupt foreign regime, while the Chagossians, whose rights have been ignored, are left without protection or benefit.

Keir Starmer and David Lammy, who hoped to put their controversial Chagos policy quietly to rest, now face the full scrutiny of the British judiciary—and the indignation of the public and political opposition across the spectrum.