Dispute Over Brussels Process Rumbles On In Gibraltar

by Jason Gorringe, Tax-News.com, London

16 August 2002

The Gibraltar Opposition has hit back angrily at suggestions that the sovereignty debate has moved on, and that discussion of the Brussels Process is no longer relevant, accusing the GSD government of failing to understand the UK's position on the issue.

The Opposition has long been of the opinion that the entire Brussels Process, as the umbrella under which Anglo-Spanish talks can take place, should be rejected. However, in a recently released statement, the government questioned the priorities of its political rivals, arguing that:

'The situation that Gibraltar currently faces is not about an interpretation of the Brussels agreement. Surely the Opposition can see that this is not the issue. The current situation is about the fact that the United Kingdom have, for the first time and in violation of our right to self-determination conceded the principle of sharing our sovereignty with Spain.'

The government statement went on to suggest that:

'The Opposition's insistence on focusing only on the process rather than on the very clear policy of the British government is perplexing. The British government did not need the Brussels agreement and does not support attending Brussels talks as presently structured. Neither this nor the obvious fact that the principle of joint sovereignty is unacceptable to the overwhelming majority of Gibraltar has prevented the United Kingdom from pursuing its policy.'

However, the Opposition believes that without the Brussels agreement and subsequent process, the bilateral talks between the UK and Spain could not have taken place:

'The Government is...completely mistaken in addressing the Brussels agreement as if it were something from the past and which will have no bearing on the lives of the people of Gibraltar,' a statement released this week explained, continuing:

'The agreement is still very much alive and kicking. It is wrong also for the Government to pretend that the current difficulties for Gibraltar have somehow emerged out of the blue unrelated to any negotiating structure which existed previously.'

'The Brussels agreement is the mechanism that Jack Straw and Ana Palacio have used to justify their actions. It is for this reason that the Opposition will not rest until it has been destroyed.'

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