Mauritius is in “no rush” to secure a Chagos Islands deal with the UK and is still pushing for more money, officials have told The Telegraph.

The Indian Ocean country has reportedly been offered £9 billion over 99 years by the UK for the continued use of a major US-UK airbase on Diego Garcia, but the Mauritian government is demanding significantly more.

Fears are growing in Government that the deal could collapse, with the incoming presidency of Donald Trump, who is openly against Britain handing over territory to a country with increasingly close ties to China, adding an additional complication.

A Mauritius official close to the Chagos issue said the lease money offered by the UK was “insufficient” and the wording of the Oct 3 agreement on sovereignty was “excessively restrictive”.

“We want to iron out the differences on sovereignty, lease terms and finances before signing the deal. There is no rush from our side and until our terms are met, there will be no deal,” they told The Telegraph.