Spanish workers turn on Madrid as border strife over Gibraltar grows

Increased controls have meant lines back up for hours, say nearby residents afraid for their livelihoods

By in La Línea de la Concepción SPANIARDS living close to the border with Gibraltar say they are fearful for their livelihoods and furious at their country’s aggressive stance towards Britain amid growing tensions about the future of the territory after Brexit.

“I want Gibraltar to stay British. Spain’s government isn’t worthy of the name and should start by looking after its own huge problems,” says Jesús Moya, 48, from San Roque, who travels in and out of Gibraltar every day to work as a delivery man for Nestlé.

Unemployment in the area is about 35 per cent and many local businesses depend on Gibraltarians who visit to enjoy Andalucian food and hospitality.

“Our economic dependency on Gi- braltar is practically total,” says Juan Franco, mayor of La Línea de la Concepción, a town where some 10,000 workers commute to the Rock each day.

Mr Franco remembers the border being closed by his namesake, the Spanish dictator, in 1969 and remaining sealed for over a decade. “That caused deep economic depression and poverty. That time is still remembered today as a trauma,” he said.

Manuel Márquez was among the victims of Franco’s decision, which left him trapped in his docker’s job in the UK territory. He was later jailed for crossing the border to attend his father’s funeral. “The Spanish government’s policy towards Gibraltar always hurts the people in this area,” he said.

Increased border controls by Spanish police have caused long queues to back up right through La Línea in the past week. “I never heard of a border where you get so thoroughly checked when you are leaving a country,” says Nuria Gómez, who works as a commercial manager for a Gibraltar firm.

Juan José Uceda, spokesman for the Association of Spanish Workers in Gibraltar (ASCTEG), says whenever any controversy involving Britain is on the news, locals know it means a big queue of up to three or four hours to get in and out of the territory the next day.

Salvador Molina, a retired dockworker and ASCTEG’s president, said the mentality of Spanish politicians was comparable to Franco’s thinking.

“They eat the Spanish flag for breakfast, lunch and dinner, but don’t care about what we are going to eat,” he said. “The best solution would be to put the border further back and we would be on the other side, with Gibraltar.”

Mr Franco urges all sides to seek “a creative solution which leads to common development of the whole area”.

Salvador de la Encina, who represents the province of Cádiz, which includes La Línea, in Spain’s Congress for the Socialist opposition party, agrees.

He said: “We cannot impose joint sovereignty. Spain has never earned enough trust from the people of Gibraltar. To woo someone, you give them flowers – not a flowerpot on the head.”