Gibraltar chief: I will never yield sovereignty to single inch of Rock

THE Chief Minister of Gibraltar has vowed to never give up British sovereignty over “a single inch of the Rock” as fears mount over the territory’s postBrexit future.

Saying “no way Jose!”, Fabian Picardo dismissed concerns that a planned agreement between Lord Cameron and the European Union would mean Gibraltar’s border with Spain was British in name only.

His intervention came after the House of Commons’s European scrutiny committee (ESC) warned on Thursday that it feared the deal would allow “the pendulum to swing too far in the direction of the EU”. In a letter to

Telegraph, Mr Picardo pushed back on the concerns, writing that the committee’s suggestion that sovereignty would be handed over was “abhorrent”.

“The suggestion from the European Scrutiny Committee (ESC) that I or any Gibraltarian chief minister or politician would sign up to terms that would weaken our sovereignty, control or jurisdiction over a single inch of the Rock is abhorrent to me and to all Gibraltarians,” he wrote.

“Were I to agree to even a hint of that, my cabinet and I would not survive walking even a single imperial yard down Main Street, Gibraltar.”

The EU and Britain have been negotiating for months over how Gibraltar’s border with Spain will be managed now that Brexit has been finalised.

On Thursday, the ESC penned a letter to David Rutley, the minister for Gibraltar, and called for negotiations to be halted until the Commons agreed a deal that would help preserve the Rock’s sovereignty.

It is believed that a UK-EU deal is close, but MPs on the committee expressed concern when, earlier this month, Mr Rutley appeared before them and admitted that European judges would be able to rule on disputes involving Gibraltar under the Brexit deal.

But Mr Picardo, who has been in office since 2011, said that the MPs’ “anxiety” was unnecessary. “I understand Parliament’s anxiety to know the terms and implications of any UK-EU agreement for Gibraltar that is reached,” he

‘To anyone who tries to take that from us, my response has already been declared – No way Jose!’

said. “They will be satisfied.

“I can assure all your readers that Lord Cameron and I are working in lock step to secure the arrangements needed for the economy and wellbeing of

Gibraltar and its surrounding region to flourish.

“Gibraltarians are the most dedicated and experienced guardians of Gibraltar’s British, British, British sovereignty.

“And to anyone who tries to take that from us, my response has already been declared to the United Nations – ‘No way Jose!”

Sir Bill Cash, the chairman of the ESC, said in his letter to Mr Rutley that he and the other members were concerned that Lord Cameron was trading away sovereignty in return for business opportunities.

The letter added the MPs had “serious concerns regarding the conduct and progress of the UK Government’s negotiations with the European Union in respect of a trade and border deal for Gibraltar”.

The MPs said that they were concerned about plans to move the Schengen border – the border at which the EU’s free movement rules operate – to the airport, allowing European Frontex border guards to deal with travellers from Britain or Gibraltar.

Sir Bill also expressed anger that the future of Gibraltar airport was being discussed as part of the negotiations.

“Any role for Spain in the management of the airport or change to its status, no matter how seemingly small or innocuous, must be ruled out,” he said.