PP MEP says ‘things will change’ on Gib treaty with right-wing govt in Madrid 

A Partido Popular MEP warned last week that the UK/EU treaty on Gibraltar would be “examined thoroughly” by a future right-wing government in Madrid, as he chastised the European Commission for negotiating a deal he said delivered “nothing favourable” for Spain or the EU. 

Antonio Lopez-Isturiz was speaking as the European Parliament debated relations between the EU and the UK ahead of a second major summit scheduled for November 20 in Brussels. 

“Commissioner, you have not even mentioned Gibraltar in this discussion,” he told  

The parliament was addressed by European Commissioner Maros Sefcovic, who oversees UK/EU relations and played a key role in the negotiation of the Gibraltar agreement. 

Mr Sefcovic said the EU’s relationship with the UK remained “of vital importance in the current geopolitical, security and economic context”, describing Britain as a “close partner and ally” as he sketched out goals for the forthcoming summit. 

Underpinning it all would be “respect for past agreements while working commonly to address future challenges”, he said. 

But Mr Lopez-Isturiz was unimpressed and made that clear in a tetchy statement at the end of the debate. 

“You have had plenty to say about Ireland, but nothing about Gibraltar,” he told Mr Sefcovic. 

“The time you and [Spanish Foreign Minister] Mr Albares have had to negotiate nothing favourable to Spain or Europe is running out.” 

“In a month’s time, that will change.”  

The message, complete with factual errors including a reference to Gibraltar’s “ports and airports”, is in line with past rhetoric deployed by the PP in parliamentary debates in Strasbourg and was unsurprising. 

But with Spain set to vote on November 29 in a general election where pollsters are predicting a coalition government formed by the PP and the far-right party Vox, the sentiment expressed by Mr Lopez-Isturiz will not have gone unnoticed here or in London. 

After five years of effort and EU resources deployed on the negotiation, it will likely have received a lukewarm response at best in Brussels too. 

Mr Lopez-Isturiz told Mr Sefcovic there would a “a massive influx of immigration through Gibraltar’s ports and airports because you have failed to control it and have given everything away in the negotiations”. 

“But I am warning you now that, in a month’s time, be prepared, that will change because there will be a new government in Spain that will defend Spain’s interests, which are Europe’s interests.” 

“Because we cannot allow the same thing to happen at the Gibraltar border as happened in Ceuta. And you will be responsible for it.” 

During the same debate, Vox MEP Margarita de la Pisa also compared the EU position on Gibraltar to its stance on Ceuta and complained that Spain had been “sold out”.  

“The European Union puts the interests of third countries ahead of its own, even to the point of accepting the loss of control over our borders,” she said.  

“We cannot accept the insecurity created by a soft border that prevents us from tackling the organised crime networks behind illegal immigration flows and drug trafficking.” 

“Nor can we accept a permanent military presence on the Rock, with everything that entails.” 

She told the parliament that the Gibraltar treaty was “a historic mistake” that would damage future bilateral relations with the UK. 

“We cannot contemplate better cooperation while allowing the humiliation that this agreement on Gibraltar represents for all Spaniards,” she said. 

The European Parliament is scheduled to vote on the Gibraltar agreement on December 14, with MEPs asked only to consent or reject its ratification. They cannot propose amendments to the treaty text itself.  

Two MEPs asked to prepare a report ahead of that vote - Thijs Reuten from the parliament’s Committee on Foreign Affairs and Nina Carberry from the Committee on International Trade - have proposed a draft legislative resolution recommending that MEPs give consent to the treaty.  

During a debate on the agreement early in September, numerous political blocs in the European Parliament signalled support for the treaty.  

They included the largest bloc, the European People’s Party, of which the PP is a member. 

David Mcallister, a German MEP and senior figure in the EPP, told the parliament that the group believed the treaty delivered “a comprehensive and pragmatic framework” for cross-border cooperation, adding it was “… an important step towards greater stability, economic integration and practical EU-UK cooperation”. 

Last week, PSOE MEP Idoia Mendia said the socialists supported “a much more ambitious and strategic relationship” between the EU and the UK, covering industrial cooperation in security and defence, workers’ rights, Erasmus for young people and the fight against climate change 

“Europe must work towards closer ties because, in an increasingly uncertain world, Europe and the United Kingdom are stronger cooperating than competing with each other, as we have done with the historic agreement between the European Union and Gibraltar,” she said. 

BURNHAM 

On Monday, No.10 Downing Street said Prime Minister Andy Burnham is “not leaning either way” on the UK’s future relationship with the EU. 

The Prime Minister’s call at the weekend for an “honest discussion” about a return to freedom of movement has fuelled questions about the parameters around his vision for a deepening relationship with Brussels. 

No.10 denied it was backtracking after Mr Burnham earlier left the door open to a potential referendum on freedom of movement. 

A Downing Street spokeswoman said we are “not at that stage yet” when asked whether the public would decide on proposals to get closer to the EU through a referendum or by voting on an updated Labour manifesto. 

Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood also told the Commons on Monday that Mr Burnham’s call for an honest discussion is “not the same as settled policy”. 

“The Prime Minister has also observed that there were very significant issues with freedom of movement when we were within the EU,” she said. 

“An honest debate means actually being honest about all of the aspects of that debate and not cherry-picking.” 

She was speaking after Mr Burnham spoke about the EU in a series of interviews on Monday morning. 

In one, he ruled out the possibility of rejoining the EU within this Parliament, signalling that he could fight the next general election on a promise to take the UK back into the bloc. 

In another, he said “no” when asked whether he would allow the UK to reinstate EU freedom of movement without a referendum. 

He insisted he will “never move ahead of the British public when it comes to Brexit”. 

Mr Burnham will meet EU chiefs, including European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen, at the November 20 summit as he seeks to strike a better deal with the bloc. 

The Prime Minister wants to consider various longer-term options for a new relationship with Brussels, potentially including a return to full EU membership or joining the single market, which would require free movement. 

Mr Burnham told the Sunday Times he wanted to have a “very factual, quite evidence-based debate about this” as he acknowledged freedom of movement “had very significant challenges associated with it”. 

He said he could not imagine recommending joining the Schengen borderless area or ditching the pound to adopt the euro.