Brexit and the waning days of the United Kingdom

[Tamas]

So anyways, result of the "good" presser by Starmer where he committed not to retaliate for retarded punitive tariffs on his country: Trump called letting go of the Chavos(?) islands a "very stupid decision" and an extra excuse to take over Greenland.

Go ahead, Starmer. I am sure we are just one more carefully worded deferential semi-criticism away from swaying Trump.

[Valmy]

So anyways, result of the "good" presser by Starmer where he committed not to retaliate for retarded punitive tariffs on his country: Trump called letting go of the Chavos(?) islands a "very stupid decision" and an extra excuse to take over Greenland.

Go ahead, Starmer. I am sure we are just one more carefully worded deferential semi-criticism away from swaying Trump.

The what islands?

[garbon]

I also saw that Labour is talking about its 'one in a generation reform' of the water system by increasing regulation and powers to perform surprise inspections of water companies.

As I saw one campaigner put it, none of that matters if river quality does not improve.

I'm not sure what comms genius came up with the idea of calling a policy (where most people won't even see any evidence it is occuring) as once in a generation.

[PJL]

So anyways, result of the "good" presser by Starmer where he committed not to retaliate for retarded punitive tariffs on his country: Trump called letting go of the Chavos(?) islands a "very stupid decision" and an extra excuse to take over Greenland.

Go ahead, Starmer. I am sure we are just one more carefully worded deferential semi-criticism away from swaying Trump.

The what islands?

It's the Chagos Islands, which the Diego Garcia base is a part of.

[Valmy]

Ok I sort of understand. The UK is giving those islands to Mauritius. And this is a very stupid decision for some reason.

So therefore the US should be given Greenland.

[garbon]

Ok I sort of understand. The UK is giving those islands to Mauritius. And this is a very stupid decision for some reason.

So therefore the US should be given Greenland.

Here's our stance in May of 2025

https://www.state.gov/u-s-support-for-uk-and-mauritius-agreement-on-chagos-archipelago

U.S. Support for UK and Mauritius Agreement on Chagos Archipelago

[PJL]

And by Trump's logic, the US should own all of NATO to ensure total protection from the Russians.

[Sheilbh]

Ok I sort of understand. The UK is giving those islands to Mauritius. And this is a very stupid decision for some reason.

It is a bad decision for bad reasons. But the US (under Trump) had a veto and endorsed it.

Edit: FWIW I wouldn't be surprised to see Trump endorse Milei and Argentina's position on the Falklands.

I also saw that Labour is talking about its 'one in a generation reform' of the water system by increasing regulation and powers to perform surprise inspections of water companies.

As I saw one campaigner put it, none of that matters if river quality does not improve.

Yeah I've not seen the detail on it but my understanding is that the big problem is around the infrastructure itself - and upgrades would cost around £40 billion.

Totally separately - absolutely wild quote from Mahmood in an interview with the Telegraph

When I was in justice, my ultimate vision for that part of the criminal justice system was to achieve, by means of AI and technology, what Jeremy Bentham tried to do with his Panopticon. That is that the eyes of the state can be on you at all times.

[Duque de Bragança]

Ok I sort of understand. The UK is giving those islands to Mauritius. And this is a very stupid decision for some reason.

It is a bad decision for bad reasons. But the US (under Trump) had a veto and endorsed it.

Edit: FWIW I wouldn't be surprised to see Trump endorse Milei and Argentina's position on the Falklands.

Would be hilarious for the pro-Trump Reform and Tory types. 

Thankfully, Milei is pro-Maggie.

[mongers]

Ok I sort of understand. The UK is giving those islands to Mauritius. And this is a very stupid decision for some reason.

It is a bad decision for bad reasons. But the US (under Trump) had a veto and endorsed it.

Edit: FWIW I wouldn't be surprised to see Trump endorse Milei and Argentina's position on the Falklands.

I also saw that Labour is talking about its 'one in a generation reform' of the water system by increasing regulation and powers to perform surprise inspections of water companies.

As I saw one campaigner put it, none of that matters if river quality does not improve.

Yeah I've not seen the detail on it but my understanding is that the big problem is around the infrastructure itself - and upgrades would cost around £40 billion.

Totally separately - absolutely wild quote from Mahmood in an interview with the Telegraph

When I was in justice, my ultimate vision for that part of the criminal justice system was to achieve, by means of AI and technology, what Jeremy Bentham tried to do with his Panopticon. That is that the eyes of the state can be on you at all times.

That's like taking one of the main lessons from '1984' as being the government must know with absolute certainty what everyone's worst fear is, so that they can be 'protected' from it.

[Crazy_Ivan80]

When supposedly democratic politicians engage in decidedly authoritarian projects, even if theoretically,  these politicians shouldn't be surprised if a growing chunk of the electorate has no real beef with actual authoritarianism. Especially if the real product also professes to be in favour of the in-group, rather than everyone.

And there's little more authoritarian than a panopticon state.

[Crazy_Ivan80]

As for the Falklands: I could see Starmer agree with it even.

[Tonitrus]

Totally separately - absolutely wild quote from Mahmood in an interview with the Telegraph

When I was in justice, my ultimate vision for that part of the criminal justice system was to achieve, by means of AI and technology, what Jeremy Bentham tried to do with his Panopticon. That is that the eyes of the state can be on you at all times.

Is the Labour government trying to implode their (lack of) popularity faster than they already seem to be?

Has there been a previous UK government that trashed its electoral mandate as badly/quickly?

[Sheilbh]

That's like taking one of the main lessons from '1984' as being the government must know with absolute certainty what everyone's worst fear is, so that they can be 'protected' from it.

It reminded me of that tweet which is alarmingly evergreen:


Also I don't know why she thought "so that the eyes of the state are always on you" was the positive way to frame it

I do miss the civil libertarian streak the Lib Dems used to have because I think under Ashdown or Kennedy they'd be having a field day on all this. But as far as I can see - except for cancelling Trump's engagements with the monarchy - they've basically given up on national politics.

[Duque de Bragança]

This could go either in the Greenland thread or the Donald Trump president thread:

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/jan/20/trump-greenland-chagos-islands-uk-stupidity

Trump cites UK's 'stupidity' over Chagos Islands as reason to take over Greenland
US president says on social media that Britain's decision to cede islands to Mauritius is 'act of total weakness'

Jessica Elgot Deputy political editor
Tue 20 Jan 2026 10.16 CET
Share

Donald Trump has suggested Britain's decision to cede the Chagos Islands to Mauritius is among the reasons he wants to take over Greenland.

The US president, who is travelling to Davos in Switzerland for the World Economic Forum, made the claim as he ramped up his rhetoric on acquiring the Arctic territory.

Trump fired off a flurry of posts on his Truth Social platform overnight on Tuesday about taking over Greenland, which is a territory of Denmark, the US's Nato ally.

Writing on the website, Trump said "Shockingly, our "brilliant" Nato Ally, the United Kingdom, is currently planning to give away the Island of Diego Garcia, the site of a vital US Military Base, to Mauritius, and to do so FOR NO REASON WHATSOEVER.

"There is no doubt that China and Russia have noticed this act of total weakness. These are International Powers who only recognise STRENGTH, which is why the United States of America, under my leadership, is now, after only one year, respected like never before.

"The UK giving away extremely important land is an act of GREAT STUPIDITY, and is another in a very long line of National Security reasons why Greenland has to be acquired."

The move will come as a huge shock to No 10 after the US secretary of state, Marco Rubio, gave his warm endorsement of the handover when it was first approved.

A UK government spokesperson said: "The UK will never compromise on our national security. We acted because the base on Diego Garcia was under threat after court decisions undermined our position and would have prevented it operating as intended in future.


"This deal secures the operations of the joint US-UK base on Diego Garcia for generations, with robust provisions for keeping its unique capabilities intact and our adversaries out.

"It has been publicly welcomed by the US, Australia and all other Five Eyes allies, as well as key international partners including India, Japan and South Korea."

Trump's comments will add fuel to Conservative and Reform criticisms of the move, which have cited US concerns as a reason to deny the deal with Mauritius.

Immediately after the comments, the shadow foreign secretary, Priti Patel, said: "President Trump has said what we've said all along – Labour's £35bn Chagos surrender is a bad deal for Britain and bad for our national security. We've opposed it from day one and it's time Starmer put the security of our country first and scrap his rotten deal."

The Conservative leader, Kemi Badenoch, said: "Paying to surrender the Chagos islands is not just an act of stupidity, but of complete self sabotage. I've been clear, and unfortunately on this issue President Trump is right.

"Keir Starmer's plan to give away the Chagos Islands is a terrible policy that weakens UK security and hands away our sovereign territory. And to top it off, makes us and our Nato allies weaker in face of our enemies."

Badenoch said she had met Mike Johnson, the speaker of the US House of Representatives, on Monday night, where he had agreed the handover of the islands was a mistake.

Nigel Farage, the Reform UK leader, said: "Thank goodness Trump has vetoed the surrender of the Chagos islands."

Darren Jones, the chief secretary to the prime minister, suggested Trump's intervention would not have an effect on the UK's deal with Mauritius. "We've done a deal with the Mauritian government, we've legislated for the process, we've agreed the terms of the treaty, which has been signed," he told Sky News. "This is the way in which to secure that military base for the next 100 years."

Jones said Starmer was keeping calm about the criticism, as well as about the threatened tariffs on the UK over its support for Greenland. "We disagree with President Trump on Greenland, and the prime minister has been very clear about that. In the past the prime minister has shown that private, proper British diplomacy can work ... he has a good track record of this," he told BBC Radio 4's Today programme.

"It's noisy, I understand that, it's challenging, it's not normal for geopolitical discussion to be handled in this way. But British diplomacy is working."

The UK has signed a £3.4bn agreement to cede sovereignty over the Chagos Islands to Mauritius but the deal is facing significant opposition in the House of Lords. On Monday, the MP Andrew Rosindell, who defected from the Conservatives to Reform UK, cited a failure to stand up for the Chagos Islands as a major factor in leaving the party.

Under the agreement, Britain cedes control over the islands to Mauritius but leases the largest island, Diego Garcia, for 99 years to continue operating a joint US-UK military base there.

Downing Street has said in the past that the deal is a "legal necessity" and backed by the US, Canada, Australia and New Zealand, which are part of an intelligence-sharing partnership with the UK. In 2021 a UN court gave an advisory opinion that the UK did not have rightful sovereignty over the Chagos archipelago.

At the time of the agreement in May 2025, Rubio said the US "welcomed the historic agreement". It went on: "This is a critical asset for regional and global security. President Trump expressed his support for this monumental achievement during his meeting with Prime Minister Starmer at the White House.

"This milestone reflects the enduring strength of the US-UK relationship."

Critics of the handover have said the deal gives China an opening in the region because of its close relations with Mauritius. Trump has regularly cited fears of Chinese influence as a reason he intends the US to take over Greenland.

Starmer is not expected to travel to Davos to meet Trump – though Trump has also posted on Truth Social what appeared to be a text from the French president, Emmanuel Macron, asking the US president to convene a summit of world leaders at Davos in order to speak about the Greenland crisis.

Tories agree with Trump; safe to best that goes for Reform too.