Gib treaty makes Spain’s sovereignty aspirations ‘illusory’ - Margallo 

Jose Manuel Garcia Margallo, Spain’s hawkish former PP Foreign Minister, said the fact the Gibraltar treaty is between the UK and the EU means it will be “absolutely irreversible” in future, adding Spain’s sovereignty aspirations had become “illusory”.  

In an interview on Canal Sur this week, Mr Garcia Margallo said the “absolutely historic” treaty would enable Gibraltar to “continue as before” to Spain’s detriment. 

Spain’s Socialist government had underscored the importance of the treaty to communities on either side of the border, focusing on practical matters such as border fluidity and leaving each side’s core position on sovereignty untouched.  

But for Mr Garcia Margallo, who also served as a PP MEP for many years, it was Gibraltar that would benefit from the agreement. 

The former PP minister said Madrid’s repeated insistence that Spain has not renounced its sovereignty claim amounted to “an empty statement”. 

He described Gibraltar’s taxation system as being that of a “tax haven” and that the Rock would continue to develop its gaming sector and make major inroads into crypto. 

“The big question is, once they enter Schengen and can enter the EU customs territory without paying taxes, who is going to set up in the Campo de Gibraltar?” he said, adding: “It’s obvious that the Campo de Gibraltar will be condemned to permanent economic dependency.” 

That makes “the recovery of Spanish sovereignty illusory” because “they live in the best of all possible worlds”. 

Mr Garcia Margallo was asked whether the agreement could be revisited to further Spain’s sovereignty aspirations. 

“It’s very difficult because this is an agreement between the European Union and the United Kingdom, not an agreement between Spain and the United Kingdom,” he said”  

“To reverse that, all 27 [EU members] would have to agree.” 

“I think this is absolutely irreversible.”