Brexit: Gibraltar

Lord Selkirk of Douglas Excerpts

Tuesday 21st March 2017 Lords Chamber

[Lord Selkirk of Douglas (Con)]

My Lords, it is a great pleasure to follow the noble Lord, Lord Boswell, the chairman of the EU Select Committee, on the needs of Gibraltar, which must not be overlooked. It has long been popular to invoke the Rock of Gibraltar as a symbol of steadfastness and safety. Now, as a result of Brexit, the Government must strive vigorously to ensure that that massive limestone promontory, the territory that surrounds it and its infrastructure should remain in excellent condition and that the people will thrive.

Greek myths describe the Rock as one of the Pillars of Hercules. In more recent times, we have had 300 years of shared history to uphold after Gibraltar was ceded by Spain in the treaty of Utrecht in 1713. Since then, like the ravens at the Tower of London, the Barbary apes that live on the Rock have often been depicted as legendary guardians of Britain’s political fortunes. Well aware always of the need to boost morale, during the Second World War Winston Churchill was anxious that the apes, whose numbers had fallen as low as seven, were seen to continue to flourish. As the Battle of Arnhem was raging, he sent a message to the Colonial Secretary demanding that action be taken to ensure that the troop of animals on the Rock should total no fewer than 24.

To return to the present day, clearly the United Kingdom’s decision to leave the European Union has raised complex and hugely important issues for the Gibraltarians, who voted by 96% to remain in the EU. Almost immediately, the Spanish Government once more raised the vexed issue of possible joint sovereignty to allow Gibraltar to stay in the EU. However, this was angrily rejected by its Chief Minister, Fabian Picardo, who characterised it as the generosity of the “predator” towards a wounded prey. Borrowing words from President John F Kennedy’s inaugural speech in 1961, the Chief Minister movingly told the House of Commons Exiting the European Union Select Committee that:

“Gibraltar will pay any price, bear any burden and meet any hardship in the context of ensuring that we have a future that is bright and exclusively British post-Brexit”.


Gibraltar, through no wish of its own, finds itself on the front line of the consequences of our planned exit from the European Union. After Brexit, the UK will have two land borders with the EU: one between Northern Ireland and the Irish Republic and the other between Gibraltar and Spain. Currently, around 12,000 people cross that Spanish border every day to work in Gibraltar, making up 40% of the workforce there. I strongly support the report’s call for the maintenance of a frontier between Gibraltar and Spain which is as free flowing as possible following Brexit. It emphasises the need for all parties,

“to work together in good faith to reach an agreement that supports ongoing regional cooperation and trade, and avoids undue disruption to the lives of thousands of border residents who cross the frontier daily”.

The report also stresses—the noble Lord, Lord Boswell, made this point firmly a moment ago—that the Government of Gibraltar have placed their trust in the UK to negotiate on their behalf. It goes on to state that,

“the UK Government has a moral responsibility to ensure that Gibraltar’s voice is heard, and its interests respected, throughout the Brexit process”.

I believe that Britain’s negotiators must also be vigilant over any attempts by Spain to use the constitutional future of Gibraltar and the issue of sovereignty as a bargaining tool.

EU funding has played an important role in Gibraltar’s development in recent years. Does the Minister agree that there is an urgent need for the Government to clarify what kind of UK financial assistance will be available for projects in Gibraltar after Brexit, especially beyond 2020? After Brexit, can we also be assured that the Government will support opportunities for Gibraltar to benefit from any new trade deals which are negotiated by the UK in the future? In conclusion—I am on my last sentence—I hope the Minister will be able to promise us that in every way possible in the months ahead, the Government’s negotiators will shoulder their historic responsibility and work to secure the best possible outcome for this uniquely patriotic and enterprising British Overseas Territory.