Very few of us expected the first 100 days of Keir Starmer’s premiership to be a resounding success. But neither did we expect things to get this bad, this quickly. It would be impossible to count this government’s failures on one hand. First, we had the freebie scandal, where cabinet ministers were happy to laud their working-class credentials while treating themselves to executive boxes, lavish gifts, and free gig tickets courtesy of generous donors. Then came the inheritance tax raid on already struggling farmers – a move that will likely bring in a pittance to the Treasury’s coffers, if farms don’t go bust first. Even Rachel Reeves’s disastrous Autumn Budget managed to kill off what little hope our faltering economy had of recovery.

But it is David Lammy’s blunder over the Chagos Islands that takes the cake. It is simply astonishing. The history of the archipelago is a complex one. After splitting from Mauritius in 1965 (when the latter was still a British colony), Britain paid £3million to retain the islands – later leasing Diego Garcia to the US for a vital military base and removing the Chagossians in the process. In recent years, non-binding UN rulings have declared British control unlawful and backed Mauritius’ claim to the territory.

But rather than defend our sovereignty, Starmer’s government has rushed to finalise a deal handing the islands over – potentially at a cost of billions – without even consulting the very people displaced. This in itself is not surprising.

We’ve seen our Prime Minister’s reluctance – or perhaps inability – to defend our national interests when they clash with the whims of international courts time and time again. It’s clear where his priorities lie. Last month, Reform leader Nigel Farage, channelling his cosy ties with the US president, claimed even Donald Trump was miffed at the deal, with his Secretary of State Marco Rubio apparently giving Lammy a stern talking-to over. But that didn’t seem to move the needle at all.

The significance of the Diego Garcia military base cannot be overstated. It is our only strategic asset in the Indian Ocean. Yet, Downing Street has just announced it is nearing an agreement with Mauritius on the Chagos Islands' future, apparently with a begrudging nod from the US.

As this deal edges closer to reality, Starmer’s habit of placing the demands of other countries ahead of Britain’s interests risks damaging our ‘Special Relationship’ beyond repair. How can we now be seen as reliable allies?

Is it not bad enough that in Lammy, we have a Foreign Secretary completely adrift from reality? Now we have a Prime Minister who is more interested in acting as a lawyer than a statesman – bending to a tight circle of human rights lawyers who couldn’t care less about the needs and desires of millions of British taxpayers.

From the Trump administration’s perspective, if Britain wants to haemorrhage billions to satisfy a non-binding legal opinion, well, that’s our problem. And honestly, who could blame them? After all, the Americans could very well take the base by force if they have to – especially if the geopolitical landscape continues to shift.

Already this week, satellite imagery from Diego Garcia has revealed a serious ramp-up in military assets, including the deployment of six stealth B-2 bombers. These are strategic aircraft designed to slip past the most advanced air defences. Make no mistake, America under Trump will continue to prioritise its own national security interests, even if its allies like Britain are determined to shoot themselves in the foot.

This debacle lacks even a flimsy national security rationale. The Chagossians themselves haven’t been consulted, so there isn’t even the usual hand-wringing “do the right thing” excuse. A lawsuit by Chagossian Voices against the Foreign Secretary for failing to consult them has only added to the embarrassment – especially after Lammy claimed otherwise in Parliament last year. Even the idea that the joint UK-US base couldn’t continue to function under British sovereignty is nonsense.

The Prime Minister’s waffle about “the electromagnetic spectrum” needing a deal to keep our communications secure is little more than smoke and mirrors. Relying on Mauritius to uphold a 99-year lease on Diego Garcia for vital UK and US security interests is, frankly, wishful thinking. Once sovereignty is handed over, expect a flurry of problems: legal battles, Chinese pressure, meddling with our satellite and communications access, or attempts to undermine base operations entirely.

Meanwhile, the only subject that seems to genuinely capture the Prime Minister’s attention is Netflix’s latest series. Perhaps if the streaming giant released a show on the Chagos fiasco – complete with a cast of bungling bureaucrats, a disappearing island chain, and a prime minister who thinks geopolitics is best left to lawyers – he might finally tune in.