Doughty hails Gibraltar deal as ‘new course with huge benefits’ for UK–EU ties

The UK’s Minister for Europe, Stephen Doughty, has hailed the political agreement for a UK/EU treaty on Gibraltar as a landmark achievement that sets “a new course with huge benefits” for all parties involved, framing it within a broader reset in relations between the UK and the European Union.

Speaking at the UK–EU Parliamentary Partnership Assembly plenary in London earlier this week, Mr Doughty said the Gibraltar agreement was the result of “incredibly hard work” by teams from the UK, EU, Spain and Gibraltar, and held it up as a practical example of the more cooperative post-Brexit spirit that has emerged since the change of government in the UK last year.

Mr Doughty reflected on “…the fantastic work we’ve done to achieve a political agreement on Gibraltar, which was down to incredibly hard work on both the UK and EU, and Spanish and Gibraltar teams, and I think it sets a new course with huge benefits.”

The minister framed the Gibraltar talks as emblematic of a more pragmatic, problem-solving approach to post-Brexit issues, contrasting it with the years of tension that followed the UK’s departure from the EU.

He said the agreement demonstrates how the UK and EU can still work closely together on sensitive questions where geography, economics and people-to-people links make cooperation unavoidable.

Mr Doughty reflected too on the wider “reset” in UK–EU relations, built around rebuilding trust, strengthening security and tackling shared challenges.

He highlighted the role of personal and institutional relationships between officials, civil services and parliamentarians on all sides.

“It’s also been the unseen stuff, the stuff that doesn’t get all the attention in the headlines every week,” he said, praising “that new spirit of cooperation between our officials and between our excellent civil services, in finding solutions on key challenges that we face, particularly in the security and defence space.”

While the Gibraltar political agreement were not set out in the speech was mentioned just in passing, the reference underlined its importance in the UK Government’s European strategy.

Mr Doughty cast Gibraltar not as an isolated issue but as part of a wider framework of UK cooperation with European partners, citing recent engagements with Spain, Greece and Romania, and closer dialogue with EU institutions on defence, hybrid threats and support for Ukraine.

He said the new approach is already paying dividends, pointing to what can be achieved when the UK and EU work “as trusted friends and partners” rather than adversaries “in a new era, and one which is defined by many of the geopolitical and economic challenges, and social challenges”.

“I’m glad to report that I feel [the reset] is going extremely well,” he said, adding that the progress made so far was “a team effort” involving governments, the European Commission and parliamentarians.

As the UK and EU continue negotiations on other files, including defence industrial cooperation, Doughty presented the Gibraltar agreement as a model: a contentious, long-running issue addressed through patient diplomacy, shared interests and a renewed commitment to practical solutions over political point-scoring.