UK ‘steadfast’ in support for Gib and commitment to treaty, Commons told

The UK Government, in a submission to a House of Commons select committee, has reiterated its “steadfast” support for Gibraltar and its commitment to a UK-EU treaty on the Rock’s future relations with the bloc.

The message is not new but underlines similar language used on successive occasions whenever UK ministers speak publicly about Gibraltar and the treaty talks, which remain ongoing after 14 formal negotiating rounds.

The statement - dated December 18, 2023, but published on Tuesday – was made in a UK Government response to a report by the European Scrutiny Committee published last November and titled ‘The UK’s EU representation: what has changed and how is it working?’.

In the report, committee MPs pointed to “structural and functional changes” to the work of the UK Mission in Brussels, which is headed by ambassador Lyndsay Croisdale-Appleby, a senior UK diplomat who since 2016 has been deeply involved in all aspects of Brexit as it relates to Gibraltar, as well as in treaty talks.

They agreed with Mr Croisdale-Appleby on the importance of transparency in order to develop “a strong and open relationship” between the Brussels mission, UK MPs and the wider public.

And they urged the UK Government to work to “get coverage” for the Overseas Territories, which had been “significantly affected” by being excluded from the Trade and Cooperation Agreement between the UK and the EU following Brexit.

In its response to the report, the UK Government said it continued to provide support for the OTs in Brussels.

“The Overseas Territories are a much-valued part of the whole UK family and we continue to do all we can to protect their interests,” the response, published by the European Scrutiny Committee as an annex to its report, said.

“During negotiations of the Trade and Cooperation Agreement [TCA], the European Commission did not agree to negotiate a future relationship that included the Overseas Territories. The UK sought to change this position, but the Commission declined to engage.”

“Nevertheless, while the Overseas Territories are not part of the TCA, we continue to use our diplomatic resources and influence to support and facilitate their engagement with the EU as requested by the Territories.”

“For example, we support the Overseas Territory Governments to access EU markets and the opening of local offices in Brussels (Bermuda and Gibraltar both have representations in Brussels.)”

And referring to Gibraltar specifically, the report underlined the UK’s position echoing language used by ministers too in recent public statements.

“The UK, working side-by-side with the Government of Gibraltar, is committed to concluding a UK-EU treaty in respect of Gibraltar as soon as possible,” the response said.

“The UK is steadfast in its support for Gibraltar and will not agree to anything that compromises sovereignty.”

In his evidence to the committee in June 2022 – a transcript of which is included in the report – Mr Croisdale-Appleby said he spent “a considerable part of my time” working on post-Brexit issues relating to Gibraltar and, separately, Northern Ireland.

And while he said he and his team worked on a variety of issues facing the OTs after the UK’s departure from the EU, there was “a particular link” to the Gibraltar Government given the treaty negotiation.

“I have been playing a particular role in that negotiation, in part because of my knowledge of Gibraltar from previous roles,” he said.

“That negotiation is led from the Foreign Office in London under the direction of the Foreign Secretary, but we have been very involved in all the negotiating rounds and in seeking to try to develop a solution to the particular challenges that Gibraltar faces.”

Mr Croisdale-Appleby said part of that work involved discussions with countries such as San Marino to explore how they managed their relations with the EU and neighbouring member states.

Without going into detail, he pointed to “…certain potential parallels with some aspects of what we might want to put in place with Gibraltar, for example.”

“There are a range of issues that we discuss with them that generally reflect areas of what we see as opportunity or areas of difference with the EU where they have a particular or a close relationship with the EU,” he said at the time.

“That is where we find there are useful discussions to have in particular.”