UK and Spanish parliaments debate Gibraltar after Brexit

Gibraltar’s post-Brexit future was debated in the UK and Spanish parliaments yesterday, where British and Spanish ministers responded to questions on what withdrawal from the EU might mean for communities on either side of the border.

In London, the House of Commons was told that Gibraltar was “an engine of prosperity” for the Campo de Gibraltar, but that its economic contribution to the surrounding region hinged on “a well-managed and smoothly operational” border that must continue after Brexit.

In Madrid, the Senate was told that the PSOE government of Pedro Sánchez was continuing the strategy set by the Partido Popular, leaving sovereignty outside of the Brexit negotiations and focusing on people even while seeking to address “irritants” that, for Madrid, gave Gibraltar “an unjustifiable competitive advantage”.

The UK’s Brexit minister Robin Walker, who chairs the Joint Ministerial Council on Gibraltar and Brexit and has played a central role in negotiations about the Rock’s future status outside the EU, flagged the “vital” importance of border flow during a question and answer session in the UK Parliament yesterday.

“A good deal is in the interests of all sides,” Mr Walker said.

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