Doughty says treaty a product of ‘real diplomacy and cooperation’

The UK/EU treaty on Gibraltar “shows what real diplomacy and cooperation can achieve”, UK Europe Minister Stephen Doughty told the House of Commons on Thursday.

He was making a statement in the House of Commons after the UK Government published the text of the draft agreement simultaneously with the European Commission, the Gibraltar Government and the Spanish Government.

“I am delighted we have reached this moment which heralds a new era of security, prosperity and stability for Gibraltar and the surrounding region, and crucially, protect British sovereignty over the Rock,” he said.

“This government has taken seriously its responsibility to protect Gibraltar's unique position and secure post Brexit arrangements that deliver on that responsibility.”

“This draft treaty protects jobs and livelihoods the people of Gibraltar.”

“And it offers a stable framework for their relationship with the European Union, removing the uncertainty that they have faced since Brexit.”

The treaty will be debated in the Commons under the Constitutional Reform Act process, known as the CRAG procedure, but that will not start until Gibraltar first debates a motion in the Gibraltar Parliament.

Mr Doughty sketched out the main areas of the treaty, which he insisted “…protects UK sovereignty and delivers practical outcomes for citizens and businesses on both sides of the border.”

Watching the debate from the Speaker’s balcony was the Governor, Lieutenant General Sir Ben Bathurst, who was in London for the occasion.

Mr Doughty’s opposition shadow, Conservative MP Wendy Morton, raised multiple queries she said would need to be addressed.

She said that while it was goo that the Gibraltar Government had led on the negotiations and prioritised border fluidity, “trade-offs come with that and it’s our duty to examine them carefully”.

She parliamentary scrutiny must be “merely to rubber stamp” in a bid to ensure provisional application of the treaty by April 10, when tighter EU border controls come into force.

The Conservative frontbencher raised concerns about Gibraltar adopting dynamic alignment, which is when a non-EU country or territory agrees to automatically update its domestic laws and standards to match EU regulations in certain areas.

She said: “This treaty does not merely apply a fixed list of EU law. It provides for future EU acts listed in the annexes to be adopted and implemented with serious consequences if they are not.”

She questioned how Gibraltar and the UK will avoid “becoming subject to ongoing EU rule-taking without meaningful political control”.

Ms Morton concluded: “There are serious questions about the operation of the border and dual checks, the role of Spanish authorities at the airport, customs and taxation arrangements, business impacts, the adoption of future EU acts listed in the annexes, ECJ (European Court of Justice) interpretation and the domestic legislation required to implement the treaty.”

Mr Doughty said the Government welcomes the scrutiny that the treaty will receive in Parliament, saying: “There is nothing to hide here.”

In relation to Ms Morton’s concerns about dynamic alignment, he said it is for Gibraltar to decide what kind of alignment it wants to have and claimed that the Tories want to “stick in the ideology of the Brexit years, rather than pragmatic arrangements that deliver for the people of Gibraltar, or indeed the people of this country”.

Later, Mr Doughty said it was “completely erroneous” to draw a comparison between the Chagos deal and the treaty on Gibraltar.

Responding to a question from Lincoln Jopp, Conservative MP for Spelthorne, he said it was “hugely unhelpful to draw false comparisons between Chagos and indeed other overseas territories”, highlighting that the chief minister of Gibraltar “specifically cautioned against doing so”.

Among the MPs who also offered preliminary views was Amanda Martin, the Labour MP who chairs the all-party group on Gibraltar.

She welcomed the agreement and expressed “strong support” for its ratification.

“This agreement represents a practical, well balanced and forward-looking settlement for Gibraltar, the United Kingdom and our European partners,” she said.

“And crucially, it is a deal that has the clear backing of the government and the people of Gibraltar themselves.”

“And that point should carry significant, significant weight across this House.”

“We should be guided not by abstract political positioning, but by the lived reality of the community whose prosperity and security are directly affected.”

“The treaty protects the United Kingdom's red lines. Sovereignty remains unchanged and was never in question. British jurisdiction is respected.”