Falklands and Gibraltar will remain British, Keir Starmer pledges
Falklands and Gibraltar will stay British, PM says
Keir Starmer: My uncle's ship was torpedoed defending Falkland Islands
Both the Falkland Islands and Gibraltar will remain British, Sir Keir Starmer has pledged. The Labour government?s decision last week to hand sovereignty over the Chagos Islands to Mauritius prompted fierce criticism from the Conservatives and concerns about the future of the UK's other overseas territories. But the prime minister told MPs the Falklands and Gibraltar "are British and they will remain British?. He said the issue was a "personal" one for him because his uncle had nearly died when his ship was torpedoed defending the Falklands. The Labour leader revealed last year that his uncle served on HMS Antelope during the 1982 Falklands war with Argentina.
The frigate was hit by torpedoes and sank in the South Atlantic. Sir Keir's uncle survived, but two British servicemen died. The ten-week conflict had been triggered when Argentina's military dictator, Leopoldo Galtieri, ordered his country's forces to invade the islands. Margaret Thatcher's government sent a naval task force to recapture them. Argentine forces surrendered, but the country still claims sovereignty over the Falklands, which lie about 300 miles east of Argentina. On Tuesday, Foreign Secretary David Lammy faced angry scenes and heckling in the Commons, when he made a statement on the Chagos deal with Mauritius.
