Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch has accused Reform UK leader Nigel Farage of proposing a humiliating bargain over British territory after he suggested an arrangement with US President Donald Trump involving the Chagos Islands and the Falkland Islands.
The dispute surfaced on 13 October 2026, although Farage's original remarks were made during an earlier appearance on the US-based Benny Show podcast. Reform UK subsequently insisted that he was discussing guaranteed American access to the Diego Garcia military base, not transferring the entire Chagos Archipelago to the United States.
What did Farage propose?
Speaking hypothetically about what he would do as prime minister, Farage suggested offering Trump a lasting guarantee over Diego Garcia in return for the US president refraining from remarks about the Falkland Islands. He described the approach as a trade that Trump, as a businessman, would understand.
Farage linked the idea to his opposition to the UK-Mauritius Chagos agreement. His remarks referred both to Chagos and to Diego Garcia, prompting disagreement over whether he was proposing to give away territory or guarantee continued American military use.
Badenoch's response
Badenoch rejected the proposal, arguing that British territory should not be used as a bargaining chip to secure silence from an American president. She called the idea humiliating and criticised Farage's approach to national security.
She maintained that both the Chagos Islands and the Falkland Islands were British and said Britain should be prepared to disagree with Trump where necessary.
Reform UK clarifies the comments
A Reform UK spokesman said Farage had been referring specifically to the Americans using Diego Garcia in perpetuity, rather than the Chagos Islands as a whole. The party pointed to Farage's longstanding opposition to the UK-Mauritius agreement.
That clarification is significant: guaranteeing military access to a base is not the same as transferring sovereignty over an archipelago. Neither Farage's hypothetical proposal nor Badenoch's criticism constitutes a change in UK government policy.
Why Chagos and the Falklands matter
The UK-Mauritius treaty signed in 2025 provides for Mauritian sovereignty over the Chagos Archipelago while establishing arrangements for the continued operation of the strategically important UK-US military base on Diego Garcia. The treaty has attracted criticism from both Conservative and Reform politicians.
The Falkland Islands are a separate British Overseas Territory whose elected representatives and the UK government affirm the islanders' right to self-determination. During a Commons debate on 13 October, ministers reiterated that Britain had no doubt about its sovereignty over the Falklands and rejected Argentine pressure connected with offshore oil development.
The latest dispute therefore centres on the political and diplomatic implications of Farage's suggested negotiating approach, rather than any announced transfer of territory.