Gibraltar

Lord Dodds of Duncairn Excerpts

Wednesday 20th November 2013 Commons Chamber

[Mark Simmonds]

My hon. Friend makes a passionate point, but he will no doubt be aware that the majority of people who are inconvenienced by the significant delays at the Spanish-Gibraltar border are Spanish citizens trying to get into Gibraltar; many of them work there. We have to try to make sure that the Spanish implement what the European Commission set out in its correspondence with Spain, which I outlined earlier, to ensure that any citizen of any country wishing to travel across the border between Spain and Gibraltar can do so in an expeditious manner.

[Mr Nigel Dodds (Belfast North) (DUP)]

Given the escalation in the violations of British Gibraltar’s waters by Spanish vessels and the increase in illegal road checks, instead of calling in the Spanish ambassador for possibly the fourth, fifth or sixth time, is it not time for the Prime Minister to get involved directly, at Head of Government level, to pursue the NATO route alluded to by the right hon. and learned Member for North East Fife (Sir Menzies Campbell)? Is it not time to spell out the consequences for Spain—it would be helpful if the Minister could do that today—if this action continues?

[Mark Simmonds]

I can assure the right hon. Gentleman that there is constant contact between the UK and Spanish Governments. We certainly call in the Spanish ambassador, as we did yesterday and have done on previous occasions, when we feel that behaviour is unacceptable, but I can give the right hon. Gentleman an assurance that over the summer the Prime Minister, the Deputy Prime Minister, the Foreign Secretary and the Minister for Europe all spoke to their respective counterparts in Spain to try to de-escalate the challenges that we are talking about. That will continue unless the Spanish change their behaviour.