Gibraltar

Edward Leigh Excerpts

Thursday 8th January 2015 Commons Chamber

[Martin Horwood (Cheltenham) (LD)]

I commend the Foreign Affairs Committee for its report, which includes thoughtful analysis. This is a timely debate. The Liberal Democrats have a soft spot for Gibraltar currently. We do not often refer to the outcome of the 2014 European elections, but there was a 49% swing to the Liberal Democrats in Gibraltar, which must be some kind of record for representative democracy, let alone for the Liberal Democrats. That is obviously testament to the outstanding good sense of the people of Gibraltar, but it is also a tribute to the hard work and diligence of Sir Graham Watson, Gibraltar’s Member of the European Parliament, who for many years took a close interest in Gibraltarian matters and was a strong advocate for the people of Gibraltar. I was personally sad that he narrowly missed re-election on that day and pay tribute to his hard work and diligence for all the people of south-west England, but for Gibraltar particularly in the context of the debate. That underlines that Gibraltar is part of the European Union.

Spain’s behaviour towards Gibraltar is completely inappropriate for a fellow European state. There are many bonds of friendship and affection between Britain and Gibraltar, but the current situation is not about that, and not even about keeping Gibraltar British for ever—after all, as we have emphasised, it is a self-governing territory. It is about absolute support for the right to self-determination for the people of Gibraltar. It is also about the rule of law and the proper application of the rules of the European Union. Since the current Spanish Government were elected in 2011, they seem to have been on a singularly aggressive campaign to try to undermine both those principles, which is extremely unfortunate.

In passing, I should say that the Popular party is a member of the European People’s party. It is unfortunate that the Conservative party withdrew from that grouping and thereby lost an opportunity for regular informal dialogue with Spanish leaders, which might have softened the Spanish Government’s approach. That is speculation, but unfortunately, the hard fact is that their attitude has become more and not less aggressive. They have withdrawn from the trilateral forum for dialogue.

[Sir Edward Leigh (Gainsborough) (Con)]

With respect, I do not believe that Spain would alter its view if the Conservative party were in the European People’s party.

[Martin Horwood]

The hon. Gentleman might be right and I accept what he says in good part.

The Spanish Government have withdrawn from the trilateral forum for dialogue, which provided a framework for discussion between the three Governments. They have committed to unravel agreements entered into under the trilateral forum to which Spain had signed up. The Spanish Foreign Minister, Senor Margallo, has called that putting the toothpaste back into the tube. In response, we should tell him that that is generally a messy and pointless process. He has also used slightly more aggressive language. The Select Committee refers to his comment that “play time is over” with respect to Gibraltar, which is intimidating vocabulary. It is unfortunate that it comes from a fellow European democracy.

One arrangement entered into under the forum was that Spain promised to respect the inclusion of Gibraltar airport in EU civil aviation measures, which an hon. Member mentioned. In fact, Spain’s objections have disrupted the single European sky project. “Single European sky” is a phrase calculated to send Eurosceptic Members purple with rage, but it does not mean that Brussels is trying to take over our skies. It is a perfectly sensible and safe improvement to air traffic control measures. It includes Norway and Switzerland, so it does not require membership of the European Union.

--- Later in debate ---

[Sir Edward Leigh (Gainsborough) (Con)]

I am not sure that I can follow the powerful rhetoric from my hon. Friend the Member for Beckenham (Bob Stewart), but I want to start by apologising to you, Madam Deputy Speaker. I had to chair Westminster Hall until 3 pm, so I apologise for my late arrival.

I also want to apologise to the people of Gibraltar. Although I have been a Member of Parliament for nearly 32 years, it was only last September that I went there—although I have always wanted to visit—as a guest of the Gibraltar Government at their national day celebrations. I declare that interest.

I am very interested in naval history so I have always taken a close interest in the history of Gibraltar. We should always remember that, but for Gibraltar, we would have lost the second world war, with all that would have pertained. We should never forget the courage of the people of Gibraltar over many years and the contribution that they have made to the defence and security of our country. That needs saying again and again.

We should also pay tribute to the courage of the Gibraltar people in the very difficult circumstances that they have faced over the last 60 years, especially when the border was closed entirely. It is very moving to talk to people from Gibraltar about those times, and their resolute determination to resist a completely illegal act.

This was the first time I went to Gibraltar. I pay tribute to my hon. Friends sitting around me who have spent years fighting the good fight. But for them, we would be in a much worse position. I urge all Members of Parliament to go to Gibraltar and, in particular, to stand in Casemates square on national day. It is a moving experience. We hear so much criticism from so many people of our country. To be in the square with 10,000 or 12,000 people who love our country, and are absolutely determined to remain a part of it, is a most moving experience.

I was speaking only on Tuesday in a debate on people who misuse their British passports to go on jihad and then try to come back. I said that there was deep anger among British people about people who do not understand our view that being British is about a love of our history and our country, and, above all, tolerance of all people. The thing about Gibraltar is that it is a wonderfully tolerant place. Over the centuries, it has been a superb melting pot for people of Jewish descent and Christians of all denominations. During the dark years of Spanish fascism, it was a beacon of light and democracy. I do not think that the people of Spain should forget that. I urge colleagues to go to Gibraltar. It is a most moving sight.

A lot of criticism has been made of both Spain and the Foreign Office. As I have been sitting here, I have been trying to understand their positions. I can quite understand that certain people in the Foreign Office take the view that Gibraltar is a very small place and Spain is a very important trading partner that we do not want to antagonise unduly. I suspect that the Foreign Office Minister accepts the argument that when one is dealing with a bully, trying to appease the bully simply makes things worse. The way to resolve this issue in the long term is for the Government, and not just us Back Benchers, to be absolutely robust. The Government say that this is a matter of self-determination, but they should mean it and prove it with their actions. When the previous Government proposed joint sovereignty, as I understand it 99% of people wanted to remain British. This principle is a rock on which we stand. There is no other principle at stake here apart from that of self-determination. I commend the words of the right hon. Member for East Renfrewshire (Mr Murphy), who has now risen very high to lead the Labour party in Scotland. When he was a Minister of the Crown he said:

“the UK Government will never—‘never’ is a seldom-used word in politics—enter into an agreement on sovereignty without the agreement of the Government of Gibraltar and their people. In fact, we will never even enter into a process without that agreement.”

We want to be like a rock in our determination—both Government and Members—to say to Spain that, whatever the provocation, it will not do any good. It could close the border entirely. It has tried it before. It could make the life of its workers coming into Gibraltar a misery. That is not going to work either. Whatever it does or says, and whatever aggravation it causes us in the Council of Ministers, we will remain like a rock in defending the right of people to remain British if they want to do so. They have after all been British for 300 years—a very long time.

We want Ministers like my hon. Friend the Member for Scarborough and Whitby (Mr Goodwill). He made a forthright stand and was prepared to walk out of the Council of Ministers and bring the process to an end. That is the sort of language that is understood. I cannot emphasise this point enough: Spain will only be encouraged by weakness and a belief that, although there are Back Benchers around me who are very strong on this issue, there are other people in the Foreign Office who say that we should make some concessions. I hope, therefore, that when the Minister stands up, he will be robust on this point—as robust as all my colleagues who have spoken.

I have tried to understand the position of the Foreign Office. Now I will try to understand Spain’s position. I can understand that many people in Spain no doubt think it wrong that, as they see it, part of their mainland is British, but these things happen in other parts of the world. Reference has already been made to the Spanish enclaves in north Africa, but leaving that aside, would I really be tremendously agitated, would I lie awake at night, if, under the treaty of Utrecht in 1704, Portland bill had been given to Spain and there were only Spanish people living there and they wanted to remain Spanish? Would I not say to myself, “Well, it’s a long time ago. It’s a part of history. These people have a right to self-determination”? Would I not say to these people, “Well, I’m never going to achieve anything by trying to bully you by closing the border or making life intolerable”? No, I would try to love bomb them, I would try to draw them in, and that is what Spain should do.

I hesitate to give advice to Spain—who am I to give advice to Spain?—but I presume that someone in the Spanish embassy will read our debate and report back to the Government. If, over the years, Spain had kept the border entirely open and tried to encourage as much trade and movement as possible, the whole mood in Gibraltar would be different. I am not saying its people would have wanted to give up their British sovereignty, but look at Monaco! It is a city sate. Nobody in France cares that it is independent. One can drive to and fro between Monaco and the south of France. It is bustling with prosperity. All the regions around it are happy and bustling with prosperity. Instead of La Linea and other places in southern Spain being dead ends, with high unemployment, misery and all the rest of it, it could be an economic boom area. So I hope that someone from the Spanish embassy reads this debate. We do not want to be antagonistic to Spain; we want good relations. We want this to be an opportunity for—dare I use this word?—friendship, for moving things forward and for opening borders and exchanging ideas and views. If Spain were to do that, the whole situation could be transformed.

This debate has been a useful one, but before I sit down, I want to say one last thing. All the nations of Europe, particularly Germany—as my hon. Friend the Member for Romford (Andrew Rosindell) said, the Queen is going on a state visit there—proclaim the principle in the EU of the free movement of workers. It is embedded in the EU. It is why we are in the EU. Of course, Spain could knock this ball back into our court, but let us use this argument against it. A nation cannot interfere with the free movement of workers who want to work in Gibraltar. That is the cardinal spirit of the EU, and the Foreign Office has to be absolutely robust with the Commission on this. It is an appalling abuse.

Imagine if we were doing this to Spanish people trying to arrive in Heathrow or tourists arriving at Dover. Imagine the outrage if the Foreign Office retaliated in that way—I am not suggesting it should enflame these matters by doing so. It would be considered an outrage. What is happening on this border, in modern-day Europe, when we are supposed to be part of a European Union and trying to improve relations with each other and improve cross-border trade and movement and all the rest of it, is a throwback to the dark, bad world of the cold war and the 1950s and 1960s. We have to make it clear to the Commission and the Spanish Government that, in the view of the House of Commons, that is simply not acceptable.