The Conservative Party leader asked Sir Keir: “This morning the Defence Secretary could not say if the Chagos deal would come out of the defence budget.
The Prime Minister told the Commons that the increase to 2.5% of GDP announced on Tuesday is for “our capability on defence and security in Europe”, and described the deal being negotiated with Mauritius as “extremely important for our security”.
Earlier on Wednesday, Defence Secretary John Healey did not say whether the Chagos money was included when asked, and the issue was pressed by Kemi Badenoch at Prime Minister’s Questions.
Sir Keir Starmer has declined to say whether money for a deal with the Chagos Islands would come out of the increase in defence spending.
On Tuesday a Conservative former defence minister suggested that money earmarked for the Chagos deal could instead be spent on the armed forces.
