Govt rejects media claims treaty would mean Spanish ‘patrols’ on Rock 

The Gibraltar Government has challenged recent reporting in parts of the British press that it said inaccurately suggested the UK/EU treaty on Gibraltar involved a compromise of sovereignty or would result in Spanish police “patrolling Gibraltar”. 

In a statement, the Gibraltar Government said there would be “no Spanish police patrolling Gibraltar’s airport or port”. 

It said checks would not take place outside the second line checks facility, informally known as the “Schengen Shack”, which it described as straddling the frontier equidistantly, and said there would be no “roaming presence between different sites”. 

The Gibraltar Government said the arrangements envisaged only a single authorised border crossing point, adding that assertions about patrols “between crossing points” ignored the fact that “there will be no multiple crossing points to patrol between”. 

It said the port would not operate as a border crossing point because there not be sufficient maritime traffic to require it, adding that there was “no envisaged traffic scenario that would warrant the creation of one”. 

It said this meant there would be no establishment of controls at the port and, therefore, no patrolling between the port and the airport. 

The Gibraltar Government added that the second line checks facility would be operational “24 hours a day, seven days a week” to cater for all potential port arrivals, and said this meant there would be no timeframe “outside the fixed opening hours” where such patrols could take place. 

On claims that UK citizens could be denied entry to Gibraltar by Spanish officials, the Gibraltar Government said this was “misleading” and that Gibraltar retained full control over its ability to set its own immigration and entry rules. 

It said that, as is the case now, there was no automatic right of entry to Gibraltar for non-resident British nationals and that the right to enter Gibraltar had always been governed by Gibraltar law. 

The statement said the treaty reflected that Gibraltar would operate within a Schengen-compatible framework at the point of entry into the Schengen Area, and that any refusal of entry would be a refusal by Schengen systems, “not by Spain acting politically or unilaterally”. 

It added that the treaty included a mechanism to allow Gibraltar immigration officials to permit a UK citizen to enter Gibraltar only, even if they were denied access to Schengen. 

The Gibraltar Government said the treaty would ensure smooth frontier operations for workers, families and businesses, protect Gibraltar’s public finances, public services and economic model, and provide long-term stability while maintaining respect for sovereignty. 

It also urged people to “beware of political narratives” in the UK and to place confidence in those involved in negotiating the treaty, saying the agreement had been reached through sustained engagement between the Government of Gibraltar and the UK Government working with the European Union. 

“The political dynamics of debate in the United Kingdom should not obscure the detailed legal and operational realities of what has been agreed,” No.6 Convent Place said.  

“This is a highly complex and technical Treaty, negotiated line by line over many years by officials and ministers who have consistently and unequivocally defended Gibraltar’s British sovereignty.” 

“Those who have been directly engaged in this process, both in London and in Gibraltar, have demonstrated that commitment throughout. In matters of this complexity and sensitivity, it is important to place confidence in those who have dedicated their lives to protecting Gibraltar’s British Sovereignty, culture and way of life.”