Treaty puts Gibraltar on ‘rock-solid foundation’ for the future, Europe Minister says

The Minister for Europe, Lord Stewart Wood, has expressed confidence that the UK/EU treaty on Gibraltar provides a “solid foundation” for the future, acknowledging early implementation problems but insisting they can be resolved through the structures for cooperation established by the agreement.

Against the backdrop of ongoing work to deepen and strengthen wider relations between the UK and the EU, he said the treaty reflected in international law values of stability, prosperity and security that Gibraltar, the UK, Spain and the wider EU shared.

Despite scepticism in some quarters in London and Brussels, he was confident the treaty would comfortably clear the ratification procedures in both the UK and European parliaments.

Speaking to the Chronicle during his first visit to Gibraltar for National Day, Lord Wood said the treaty was the product of years of work by Gibraltar, the UK, Spain and the EU, but cautioned that its success would now depend on making the new arrangements work in practice.

“Firstly, the treaty is a great achievement of many people here, not least here, Fabian Picardo, his team, the officials here, Foreign Office team back in the UK, Spanish, and the EU,” he said.

“And it's taken years and years of hard work, but it is an incredibly solid foundation. And the challenge now is implementation.”

Lord Wood said some difficulties had already emerged since provisional application began less than two months ago, including well-documented issues around customs procedures.

“None of these challenges are that surprising,” he said.

“When you merge customs systems, of course there are going to be some teething troubles.”

He also referred to the recent incursion into the port by a Guardia Civil vessel which, while unrelated to the treaty, raised concern here that of longstanding tensions in the waters that the agreement is hoped will defuse through cooperative frameworks going forward.

Lord Wood said the Foreign Office would continue supporting Gibraltar in discussions with Spain and the EU as implementation issues arose.

He argued that one of the treaty’s strengths was the way it had fostered cooperation between Gibraltar and Spain, and between London and Brussels, creating channels through which problems could be addressed.

“And they'll be progressively sorted out,” he said.

“We're going to continue to play a role in the Foreign Office in the UK of providing the support to Gibraltar and the discussions with Spain and the EU that are needed to resolve all these challenges.”

“But of course there'll be challenges on the way.”

Asked specifically about the Spanish incursion, Lord Wood said the UK would respond diplomatically as it had done previously when similar situations arose.

“We register our discontent with the Spanish diplomatically, and that's what we'll continue to do,” he said.

But he added the wider relationship created by the treaty should improve the ability of all sides to resolve such disputes through dialogue.

Lord Wood was also confident that the treaty would clear the ratification process in Westminster, which is already under way.

“I think it will be a smooth process. I'm confident that's what it will be,” he said.

“There's strong cross-party support.”

He said he would appear before the House of Lords European Affairs Committee next week as part of the scrutiny process and had already spoken to representatives of different political parties.

“I think Gibraltarians should be reassured that the process in the Westminster end will go through smoothly,” he said.

Lord Wood was similarly confident about the ratification process in Brussels, saying he had not been alerted to any particular difficulties, even though some sceptical voices could emerge.

The Gibraltar agreement comes at a time when the UK and the EU are strengthening their relations in a number of areas ranging from security to trade a decade after the Brexit referendum.

He said the Gibraltar treaty addressed “unfinished business” from Brexit and said resolving it was positive not only for Gibraltar but also for relations between Britain and the EU.

“It's useful in many ways,” he said.

“It was the last remaining bit of business, as it were, from the Brexit episode, which was not addressed properly, in my view, before,” he said.

“So it's not just great for Gibraltar, it's great for Britain and the EU that there is a foundation and a settled treaty on it.”

Lord Wood said the UK was seeking closer cooperation with the EU across areas including security, defence, economics, migration and industrial policy.

That closer relationship, he said, should assist Gibraltar as the treaty moved from negotiation into implementation.

“Some of these will be tougher to achieve perhaps, but we are committed to being a much more pro-European government,” he said.

“And in that sense, that's only good news for Gibraltar in my view, because now the treaty's in place, making its implementation work is going to require strong cooperation with Brussels and also with Spain.”

Asked whether a future change of government in Spain could affect implementation of the agreement, Lord Wood declined to speculate on Spanish politics but said the treaty was designed to endure.

“Look, this treaty is a treaty in international law and it expresses values of stability, prosperity, and security that Spanish people, Gibraltar, and the UK share,” he said.

“So I'm confident it's a resilient treaty and it will be a foundation for years to come.”

Lord Wood also sought to reassure Gibraltar over its sovereignty and right to self-determination, rejecting comparisons with other territorial disputes.

He was speaking after Argentina recently reiterated the country’s claim to the Falkland Islands, drawing support from some in the US and Israeli administrations.

“Gibraltar is a unique case,” Lord Wood said.

“We now have a UK/EU treaty which provides this rock-solid foundation to enable the people of Gibraltar to continue to be self-determining, to determine their own future.”

“And that is in place, and that isn't going to be touched by whatever happens elsewhere.”

Ans he added: “As far as the Falklands goes, the future of the Falklands is a matter for the people of the Falklands, and that's a straightforward principle for us.”

Reflecting briefly on his first visit to the Rock, Lord Wood said he had been struck by Gibraltar’s British identity, its multicultural character and the extent to which its history remained present across generations.

“Not just the Britishness of Gibraltar, but the history of Gibraltar, [which] is actually a bit of a melting pot,” he said.

“The multiculturalism within the strong British Gibraltarian tradition is very striking.”