Spain has long disputed the UK’s sovereignty over
Gibraltar, but since 2012 its Government has taken a more hard-line approach
and has significantly increased its pressure on Gibraltar and its people.
Over the last three years, Gibraltarians have suffered long border delays;
maritime incursions; and heightened rhetoric from Spanish ministers about its
sovereignty and its economic affairs. There is even a continuing refusal to
allow direct military movements between Gibraltar and Spain, including among
NATO partners.
Chairman of the Committee, Sir Richard Ottaway MP,
says,
"The behaviour of Spain toward Gibraltar is
unacceptable. We have a situation where a NATO and EU ally is deliberately
impacting the economy of a British Overseas Territory. But with the FCO taking
far too long to register diplomatic protests, we are giving entirely the wrong
impression to Spain about how seriously the UK takes these
issues."
The
report considers the reasons for the increased tension, including Spanish
allegations against Gibraltar’s financial system and smuggling controls,
as well as suggestions that Spain is seeking to distract from its own domestic
troubles. The Committee regrets that dialogue between the UK, Gibraltar and
Spain has been suspended over the last three years, and asks the Government to
set out how it intends to secure talks before the next
election.
Chairman of the Committee, Sir Richard Ottaway MP,
says
“We have no doubt that delays imposed by Spain at
the border with Gibraltar are politically motivated. The UK Government is right
to look to the European Commission to address this matter, but it should state
publicly that it will take legal action against Spain in the European Court if
there is little improvement in the next six
months.”
In
the meantime, the Committee recommends that the Government increase its use of
its own diplomatic measures toward Spain, by intensifying its use of diplomatic
protests and summoning the ambassador, as well as making the UK’s support
for Spanish aims on the international stage dependent upon improvements to the
situation in Gibraltar.
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