In European Parliament, assurances on sovereignty and a glimpse of how EU views Gib treaty  

A senior European Commission official involved in negotiating the UK/EU Gibraltar treaty said the agreement “does not deal with sovereignty” during a European Parliament session that offered a glimpse of how MEPs will approach the legal text once completed. 

Clara Alberola, principal adviser at the Commission’s Secretariat-General for Relations with Western European Partners, was speaking during a meeting of the Parliament’s Committee on International Trade on Thursday, where she took questions from MEPs. 

“The [European] Council has never asked to negotiate an agreement on sovereignty,” she said, after Spanish right-wing MEPs described the deal as “a missed opportunity”. 

“This is - and the members of the Parliament that have raised this issue know perfectly - a bilateral issue between Spain and the UK.”  

“It cannot be dealt with at EU level because there is a question of sovereignty.” 

“What we are trying to do here with this agreement is to find a solution to the very specific situation of Gibraltar after Brexit, and the objective is not to deal with the sovereignty issue, which still remains an issue that can be discussed by Spain in bilateral at any moment.” 

“So from that point of view, we will not enter into this discussion.” 

“And the agreement makes very clear that it does not put into question or change in any way the position of each party on the question of sovereignty on this territory.” 

VIEWS 

Most of the MEPs present for the discussion welcomed the agreement, albeit cautiously given the absence of a definitive text and concerns that the treaty must safeguard EU structures. 

Two Spanish Socialist MEPs – Lina Galvez and Ignacio Sanchez, both members of the Socialist and Democrats bloc - said the treaty was “crucial” for the stability and prosperity of Gibraltar, the Campo and the region as a whole. 

The agreement was “a historic milestone”, Ms Galvez said. 

Barry Cowen, an Irish MEP with Fianna Fáil and part of the Renew Europe bloc in Parliament, said the agreement for a treaty was “obviously a positive step forward” that showed UK/EU cooperation could “still deliver results”. 

“The deal brings reassurance and helps avoid unnecessary disruption,” he said, while cautioning it must protect Schengen and the EU single market.  

“It also demonstrates that even after Brexit, practical solutions can be found when there is a will to work together.” 

A similar stance was voiced by Vicent Marzà Ibáñez, a Spanish MEP from Compromís and member of the Group of Greens/European Free Alliance bloc. 

He described the agreement as “a significant, important step to correct many of the most damaging effects of Brexit on a population that voted 96% to remain in Europe”, but also for the Campo and the 15,000 people who crossed daily to work in Gibraltar. 

The only outright opposition came from a Vox MEP, Hermann Tertsch, a member of the Patriots for Europe bloc, who said the Spanish government had “once again given away sovereignty” and wasted an opportunity to end “a terrific anomaly”, meaning Gibraltar. 

His fellow Patriots colleague, however, the Hungarian MEP Enikő Győri, took a more cautious approach and said that while the agreement was “a window of opportunity”, she would wait to see the text as “the devil is always in the details”. 

Even Partido Popular MEPs refrained from rejecting the agreement outright, complaining mostly about a lack of transparency - a swipe at Spain’s Socialist government - as they bemoaned the “missed opportunity” on sovereignty and repeated age-old bugbears about smuggling, tax evasion and the environment. 

In contrast, Finnish MEP Mikel Aaltola, also part of the European People’s Party [EPP] like the PP, welcomed the agreement and said it provided “a practical resolution following years of uncertainty”. 

“Overall, this agreement reflects the strategic and collaborative effort that deepens our relationship with the UK and signals the beginning of a new phase in our partnership, one that is especially significant in the current geopolitical context,” he said. 

Croatian MEP Zeljana Zovko, also part of the EPP, echoed that sentiment, while nonetheless seeking assurance on provisions to safeguard EU structures. 

TIMELINES 

Ms Alberola said the Commission believed this was “an EU only agreement”, meaning ratification will be only in the European Parliament and not in the national parliaments of each member state. 

But she added “of course, we need to discuss this with the [European] Council”. 

The treaty, as with most international agreements, included provisions allowing it to be “terminated at any moment”, while “some parts…can be suspended if we were to see that the provisions have not been applied correctly by the other party.” 

Ms Alberola said it was “difficult” to give a precise timeline of when the legal text will be finalised. 

“We are working as hard as possible to do that,” she said.  

“There is the political objective to be able to have the agreement in place before the Entry Exit System in the EU will be applied."

"As you know, this will be mandatory as from April 2026.” 

“But of course, this is a very ambitious timetable and we need to see if we will be able to do that.” 

She nevertheless said the legal text was “well advanced” and should be finalised “at the latest in the next one to two months”. 

Ms Alberola said the agreement sought to address the “legal hole” in relations with Gibraltar after Brexit, noting that most people here had voted for Remain in the 2016 referendum. 

“Why we wanted to do that? We wanted to do that because we wanted to make sure that after Brexit, the region could maintain the level of social and economic coherence,” she said. 

“It is very important for the people living there and for the business operating there, while at the same time…ensuring that our Schengen area and our internal market and our Customs Union will be preserved.” 

“The agreement will give legal certainty, will give confidence to the people of the region and will promote - this was one of the main objectives - the prosperity and also the relations between Gibraltar and the Spanish authorities.” 

SPECIFICS 

Offering a snapshot of key aspects of the treaty, Ms Aberola said the agreement had two main pillars, the movement of people and the movement of goods. 

She explained that Schengen controls will be carried out by Spanish officials at the airport and port, though Chief Minister Fabian Picardo has previously explained there will be no checks at the port as the Morocco ferry service will be terminated and cruise passengers are pre-cleared. 

Ms Alberola said Spain will also have responsibilities on residence permits “because people living in Gibraltar will be able to go to Spain and to the Schengen Area without any kind of control.” 

Mr Picardo has previously said that Spain will not have a veto on residency permits, though the new arrangements will mean that Gibraltar will consult with Schengen members to check any new applications against the Schengen Information System to assess any risk to public health or public security. 

Spain, on behalf of Schengen members, will also have a role in the issue of visas when the main purpose will be a stay in Gibraltar, the European Parliament heard. 

Ms Alberola also highlighted “strong reinforcement and enhanced cooperation in judicial and in police matters” as party of the treaty. 

On goods, she said customs formalities on goods shipped to Gibraltar overland would be conducted by Spanish authorities at three designated customs posts, in Algeciras, La Linea “most likely” and “probably” Valencia. 

“Gibraltar will also have a system of indirect taxation equivalent to the VAT and the excise system in the EU, and progressively will converge towards the Spanish rates in order to avoid distortions in the regions,” she said. 

The agreement will also include provisions on state aid, taxation, labour, the environment and tobacco, where a “differential of pricing” with Spain will be fixed. 

On the transaction tax, she said Gibraltar would start at 15% and will align with EU VAT levels over three years to reach 17%, currently the lowest VAT rate in the bloc. 

“And at any moment there will be a group of experts that will decide if there is any distortion of competition between the two sides, Gibraltar will be asked to increase the level and to align with the Spanish level,” she said.  

She singled out provisions on state aid and said Gibraltar “will apply fully EU law on the control of state aid”. 

“They will be responsible for the application, but they will align, fully align, with all the EU law in this matter,” Ms Alberola said. 

The agreement would also include rules on the transport of goods in the Campo de Gibraltar and on aviation. 

“We have also found a solution to deal with the airport so that the airport will be open to flights in the EU,” she said. 

Ms Alberola said the agreement would also cover the rights of frontier workers and include specific provisions on financial mechanisms to promote cohesion in the region, “financed both by the UK and by the EU”. 

She flagged too measures on money laundering and said Gibraltar – which has worked hard in recent years to comply fully with OECD and FATF requirements - had committed to apply EU law as it stands today, and all the international law that applies. 

“And there is a review clause in order to align in the future. If the EU was to modify the legislation or to update the standards in this area, Gibraltar will also align with that through this review clause,” Ms Alberola said. 

Gibraltar will also apply “in a dynamic way” EU rules on data protection. 

Ms Alberola stressed the agreement did not cover services or give Gibraltar access to the internal EU market.