Donald Trump is set to give his blessing to the UK’s plan to hand over sovereignty of the Chagos Islands to Mauritius - just a day after the Tories urged him to block it.

In a major boost for Keir Starmer, the president said he was “inclined to go along with” the controversial plan.

Under the deal, Britain will reportedly pay Mauritius £9 billion over the next 99 years so that the UK-US military base at Diego Garcia will continue to operate as it does at the moment.

Former president Joe Biden backed the deal - but Trump was thought to be opposed to it on security grounds.

But speaking as he welcomed Starmer to the White House on Thursday, Trump said: “I have a feeling it’s going to work out very well.”

Indicating he would be inclined to back the Prime Minister’s deal, the US President said: “I think we’ll be inclined to go along with your country.”