Asked by: Greg Smith (Conservative - Buckingham)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, whether he has had discussions with the Secretary of State for Defence on the strategic role of Gibraltar, in the context of the negotiations with the EU on the Gibraltar-Spain border.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK Government is clear that any agreement will preserve the operational autonomy of the military facilities in Gibraltar. The Foreign Secretary and Secretary of State for Defence have discussed and are unequivocal on this. Ministry of Defence officials are fully involved in our approach to the negotiations.
Asked by: Greg Smith (Conservative - Buckingham)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, what his Department's expected timetable is for concluding negotiations with the EU on Gibraltar.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
UK-EU negotiations began in October 2021 and there have been 18 formal rounds. The Foreign Secretary, together with the Chief Minister of Gibraltar Fabian Picard, met European Commission Executive Vice-President Maroš Šefčovič and Spanish Minister for Foreign Affairs José Manuel Albares in Brussels on Friday 12 April. General political lines were agreed, including on the airport, goods and mobility. Negotiations will continue over the coming weeks to seek to conclude the UK-EU Agreement as soon as possible.
Asked by: Greg Smith (Conservative - Buckingham)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, whether he has had discussions with his Gibraltarian counterpart on self-determination in Gibraltar, in the context of negotiations with the EU on the Gibraltar-Spain border.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK Government is working side-by-side with the Chief Minister and Government of Gibraltar in our efforts to conclude a UK-EU treaty. The UK Government is clear that the people of Gibraltar enjoy the right of self-determination. The 2006 Gibraltar Constitution - which was endorsed in referendum by the people of Gibraltar - provides for a modern and mature relationship between Gibraltar and the UK. The UK Government will never enter into arrangements under which the people of Gibraltar would pass under the sovereignty of another State against their freely and democratically expressed wishes.