Senior Tories plotting to help Trump BLOCK Chagos surrender after Farage hints at Presidential 'veto'

Labour has already agreed a draft treaty with Mauritius - but when it reaches the Lords, peers are plotting to force an amendment on it to require the UK to hold a vote, The Telegraph revealed on Friday.

Any such vote would require tracking down the 3,500-strong Chagossian population in the UK - which Lords hope could delay the treaty's final sign-off until after Donald Trump's inauguration on January 20 next year.

Lord Bellingham is leading the charge to force the Labour Government to hold a referendum

GETTY/UK PARLIAMENT

Time is running out on ratifying the treaty before Trump returns to the White House

REUTERS

Lord Bellingham said: "It's going to be very difficult to override the Lords on this and then it'll delay things, and I think Trump will then have his say.

"I'm reasonably optimistic that we can turn the table on this."

Just days ago, The Independent revealed that allies of Nigel Farage had been pushing Trump's senior advisers to investigate the Chagos handover even before November 5's election.

Farage told the newspaper that Trump would be attempting to veto the deal, saying: "It's happening!"

Nigel Farage has said Trump would be attempting to veto the deal

REUTERS

While a US Government official source said: "Trump has received a UK-sourced briefing on Chagos and has asked the Presidential transition team to work with the Pentagon to get legal advice.

"He has expressed a stance in principle to object to the deal if elected on the advice of the Department of Defence based on their global security posture."

While Trump's own national security adviser Mike Waltz warned: "Should the UK cede control of the Chagos to Mauritius, I have no doubt that China will take advantage of the resulting vacuum."

The Foreign Office has insisted the treaty contains protections against Chinese encroachment on the archipelago.