Gibraltar Debate
Full Debate: Read Full DebateDepartment: Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office
Lord Bellingham
Main Page: Lord Bellingham (Conservative - Life peer)Department Debates - View all Lord Bellingham's debates with the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office
(11 years ago)
Commons ChamberRead Full debate Read Hansard Text Read Debate Ministerial Extracts
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Mark Simmonds
The right hon. Gentleman can be assured that we express our concern and distaste in the strongest possible terms about both the incursions into British territorial waters and the border disputes we were talking about a moment ago. I assure the right hon. Gentleman that our position on the sovereignty of Gibraltar is clear and unchanged. We will protect the right of the people of Gibraltar to determine their political future. The UK will never enter into arrangements under which the people of Gibraltar will pass under the sovereignty of another state against their wishes. Furthermore, the UK will not enter into any process of sovereignty negotiations with which Gibraltar is not content.
Mr Henry Bellingham (North West Norfolk) (Con)
When my hon. Friend next sees his Spanish counterpart, will he remind him that Spain possesses two enclaves on the coast of north Africa, and will he tell him that we will respect Spain’s sovereignty over its overseas territories if it does the same in respect of Gibraltar?
Mark Simmonds
My hon. Friend makes a powerful point in an extremely relevant way, and I have no doubt that the Spanish ambassador and others in Spain will have noted his comments.