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  "path": "/politics/wes-streeting-us-fundamental-differences-donald-trump-chagos",
  "publishedAt": "2026-04-12T11:22:49.000Z",
  "site": "https://www.gbnews.com",
  "tags": [
    "‘We’re all thinking of him’: Wes Streeting sends well-wishes to Eamonn Holmes",
    "Keir Starmer reported to UN for 'crimes against humanity' over treatment of Chagossians",
    "Royal Navy 'needs FRANCE to protect Britain's waters' warn defence insiders in latest assessment",
    "The GB News Editorial Charter"
  ],
  "textContent": "\n\n\nWes Streeting has addressed what he called “fundamental differences” with the United States amid serious fears over a threat to the special relationship.\n\nThe Health Secretary delved into the apparent rift while being grilled by GB News’s Camilla Tominey on the fate of the Chagos deal and the Government’s “delaying and dithering” on defence.\n\n###\n\n\n\n\nHe was speaking to The People’s Channel as it emerged that the bill to cede sovereignty to Mauritius had been removed from next month's King's Speech.\n\nThe legislation underpinning the transfer of the islands from British control will be omitted from the declaration after President Donald Trump publicly slammed the deal as \"an act of great stupidity\".\n\n###\n\n\n\n\nTRENDING\n\nStories\n\nVideos\n\nYour Say\n\n###\n\n\n\n\nWhile Downing Street maintains its commitment to the agreement and intends to seek a change of heart from the US President, officials have conceded that proceeding without Washington's endorsement is impossible.\n\n“What we're trying to do is to secure the long-term future of the Chagos Islands,” Mr Streeting told Camilla, defending the plan.\n\nHe called the archipelago “essential for Britain's national security, American national security and our collective security”.\n\n“We were always clear that we weren't going to proceed without the Americans,” the Health Secretary insisted.\n\n###\n\n\n\n\n###\n\n\n\n\n###\n\n\n\n\nNevertheless, he conceded that the “need to iron out some of those disagreements and difficulties”.\n\n“We've had our differences with America, some quite fundamental ones.\n\n“That doesn't mean that the relationship is less strong,” Mr Streeting stressed.\n\nCamilla shot back: “It doesn't look very strong when you've got the US presidents comparing the Prime Minister to Chamberlain.”\n\n\n### LATEST DEVELOPMENTS\n\n\n\n\n  * ‘We’re all thinking of him’: Wes Streeting sends well-wishes to Eamonn Holmes\n  * Keir Starmer reported to UN for 'crimes against humanity' over treatment of Chagossians\n  * Royal Navy 'needs FRANCE to protect Britain's waters' warn defence insiders in latest assessment\n\n\n\n###\n\n\n\n\n###\n\n\n\n\n###\n\n\n\n\nPresident Trump has repeatedly hit out at Keir Starmer over his response to the war in Iran.\n\nHe has also slammed the state of Britain’s armed forces, branding the Royal Navy’s flagship aircraft carriers as “toys”.\n\nTo that end, Camilla then grilled Mr Streeting on an apparent lack of action on the Labour Government to arrest the decline of the nation’s defence.\n\n“You had a strategic defence review that called for urgent defence spending, and now you've kicked the investment plan into the long grass.\n\n\n###\n\n\n\n\n###\n\n\n\n\n###\n\n\n\n\n“It's not a central priority of this government, as the Prime Minister claimed recently. You're just delaying and dithering,” she slammed.\n\n“On the contrary, we want to get it right,” the Health Secretary parried.\n\n“We don't want to make the same mistakes as our predecessors in coming up with pie-in-the-sky commitments to spend X by a specific date.\n\n“We want to make sure we've got a detailed plan that sets out the increased defence investment and what it will be spent on, so that we've got a plan that will actually be delivered. That is a contrast to what we've seen before,” Mr Streeting declared.\n\n\n###\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n**Our Standards: The GB News Editorial Charter**",
  "title": "Wes Streeting addresses ‘fundamental differences’ with the US as he insists ‘we clearly need to iron out some difficulties’"
}