He British government has pointed out that the Treaty on Gibraltar, the draft of which was published this Thursday, “will protect sovereignty” and “military autonomy” from the United Kingdom. In a statement, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has highlighted that the legal agreement puts an end to the “last major unresolved issue” of the Brexit and avoids the imposition of controls on people and goods on the border with Spain, something that would have “devastated” the economy of the Rock and would have cost hundreds of millions of pounds per year at the expense of British taxpayers.
The British Government has wanted to highlight the issue of sovereignty to make it clear that the United Kingdom is not making concessions in this matter, at the same time that he has insisted on his commitment to the so-called “double padlock”which states that London will never accept agreements under which Gibraltar comes under sovereignty of another state “against their free and democratically expressed will” and determines that no process of negotiations on sovereignty will be initiated with which the citizens of the Rock do not agree.
“In close collaboration with the Government of Gibraltar, and without agreeing anything without its consent, we have a treaty that preserve sovereignty and offers certainty when Gibraltar’s way of life was threatened. The UK’s commitment to Gibraltar will never falter”has assured the Secretary of State for Europe, Stephen Doughty.
Economic development
The British authorities maintain that maintaining a hard border would have involved mandatory passport checks and endless queues for those close to 15,000 workers cross-border, in addition to imposing a customs model with “cumbersome” controls on the land border. The solution agreed with Brussels, they say, will allow strengthen connectivity and the economic opportunities of the region thanks to the opening of direct flights between Gibraltar and other destinations in the European Union.
The economic development of the territory has been one of the main arguments put forward by the Chief Minister of Gibraltar, Fabian Picardowho has pointed out that the treaty “safeguards the economy and offers the certainty that citizens and companies need”, while protecting “unequivocally” the position of the Rock in terms of sovereignty. “[El acuerdo] allows Gibraltar to look to the future with confidence, protecting our british lifestyle and opening new opportunities for growth and prosperity”he assured.
Criticism from the right
The Treaty has generated mistrust among Brexit advocateswho fear that it represents another step towards loss of sovereignty British over the territory. He Conservative Party has demanded that the Government present the text in Parliament as soon as possible so that it can be subjected to scrutiny. “Gibraltar is British. Its population has repeatedly and overwhelmingly chosen to remain under British sovereignty. Any treaty that grants Spain new powers over entry, residence, infrastructure or law enforcement must be examined line by line by Parliament before it comes into force,” said the ‘Tory’ MP Wendy Morton.
Both the United Kingdom and the EU claim to be working to ensure that the agreement can come into force as soon as possible. Legal teams are completing the review and translation of the text with the aim of all parliaments having access to it “in the same time frame.” The treaty will be put to a vote of the british parliament before its ratification, a procedure that should not present obstacles since the Labor Party has a large majority in the House of Commons.
Subscribe to continue reading
