Gibraltar Treaty
Debate between Ashley Fox and Stephen Doughty(3 days, 6 hours ago)
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Stephen Doughty
Matters for Gibraltar’s Parliament are obviously matters for that Parliament, but I can assure the hon. Lady that this treaty will go through the Constitutional Reform and Governance Act process in the normal way in this place. I wanted to take the important step of coming here to make a statement today, even with the draft treaty, to ensure that there was full scrutiny and that we get away from some of the nonsense that we have seen in the media about us somehow hiding this process from Parliament.
Sir Ashley Fox (Bridgwater) (Con)
I was honoured to represent Gibraltar during my 10 years as a Member of the European Parliament, so I know how important their British identity is to our fellow citizens living there. I am pleased that the treaty was negotiated with and agreed by His Majesty’s Government of Gibraltar, but can the Minister confirm that Gibraltar’s Parliament will have the opportunity to scrutinise the treaty and that we will have the opportunity to know that Parliament’s views before we vote in this House?
Stephen Doughty
It is my understanding that there will be a scrutiny process in the Gibraltar Parliament, although ultimately that is a matter for that Parliament. I know that this treaty has enjoyed lengthy discussion in Gibraltar. We have certainly worked closely with His Majesty’s Government of Gibraltar at every stage of the process, and it is for them to go through their processes there—I understand that the Chief Minister has been making statements today. I am sure that we will have the chance to consider what the Gibraltar Parliament says. The hon. Gentleman should be assured that I have also met the leader of the opposition in Gibraltar, and we engage across the political spectrum there.
Chagos Islands
Debate between Ashley Fox and Stephen Doughty(1 year, 3 months ago)
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Stephen Doughty
The hon. Gentleman will surely know that the convention is that we deal with one Administration at a time. We have very positive and warm engagement with President-elect Trump and Vice President-elect Vance’s incoming Administration. We look forward to discussing these matters with them, and we will engage with the United States in the usual way. We are absolutely clear that this treaty is in the UK-US national security interests. It meets the security concerns, and it puts the base on a secure footing into the next century.
Sir Ashley Fox (Bridgwater) (Con)
Can the Minister explain why the Government rushed into this deal so that it could be completed just before the Mauritian election? Is it proper for the British Government to give diplomatic kudos to a party in a foreign election?
Stephen Doughty
I completely reject those comments. Given that the previous Government spent over two years engaging in multiple rounds of negotiations in preparing the basis on which we got a deal done, the idea that we rushed into something is simply not true. It was not done in a rush. We are getting the job done, and keeping our national security and our interests secure.