Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what discussions the Government has had with the Government of Mauritius in relation to Sri Lankan nationals located on Diego Garcia.

The Government discussed a wide range of issues with Mauritius during the negotiations over the exercise of sovereignty over the Chagos Archipelago, including the migrant situation on Diego Garcia. The agreement reached between the UK and Mauritius on 3 October will shut down any possibility of the Indian Ocean being used as a dangerous illegal migration route to the UK, with Mauritius taking responsibility for any future arrivals once the treaty underpinning the agreement enters into force. Any further arrivals before the treaty comes into force will be handled in line with the recent agreement with St Helena.