The Hon Dr Joseph Garcia CMG MP, Deputy Chief Minister

Madam Speaker,

I am grateful for the opportunity to make some observations following the Statement by my Honourable Friend the Chief Minister.

I do so conscious that the full debate on a Motion will follow in due course.

And I do so with a profound sense of pride — as one of the team who have devoted many years to ensuring that Gibraltar emerged from Brexit protected, secure and positioned for the future.

The publication this morning of the Agreement between the United Kingdom and the European Union concerning Gibraltar is a watershed moment in our modern political history.

This process began formally in October 2021.

But in reality, it began almost a decade ago with the referendum of June 2016.

It then entered a decisive new phase when Gibraltar actually left the European Union together with the United Kingdom on 31 January 2021.

It is worth pausing on that date.

On 31 January 2021, Gibraltar left the European Union.

Yet the border did not suddenly harden.

There was no immediate rupture.

No abrupt dislocation of daily life.

That was not accidental.

The bridging measures which cushioned Gibraltar were the product of sustained negotiation.

They were carefully designed to shield us from the most disruptive consequences of Brexit.

And as we consider the Treaty text published today, that achievement is one we should remember.

PROCESS OF EXIT AND FUTURE

From the outset, the Government’s objective was clear: to safeguard the interests of Gibraltar.

That objective first translated into securing Gibraltar’s inclusion in the Withdrawal Agreement between the UK and the EU.

That inclusion mattered enormously.

It ensured an orderly exit.

It provided a transitional period.

It prevented a cliff edge.

That transitional period preserved stability while the future framework was negotiated.

It provided breathing space.

It protected jobs and livelihoods.

In short, it shielded Gibraltar from a hard Brexit.

THE ALTERNATIVE: A NON-NEGOTIATED OUTCOME

Since then, our task has been to avoid a Non-Negotiated Outcome.

The text published today represents the successful culmination of that effort.

In 2016 Gibraltar voted overwhelmingly to maintain a relationship with the European Union.

 The Treaty will deliver a structured and legal framework for that continued relationship.

But we must be candid about the alternative.

Absent agreement, Gibraltar would have faced the full brunt of the European Union’s external border regime.

Permanent immigration checks.

Enduring customs friction.

Structural delay at the frontier.

The EU Entry/Exit System would have applied automatically at the land border.

Biometric registration.

Electronic processing.

Systematic controls — not temporarily, but permanently.

That was the legal default.

So this Treaty must be judged not against theoretical perfection, not against the ideal, but against the realistic alternative.

And the only alternative to this text was a hard external Schengen border.

More friction.

Greater cost.

Legal uncertainty.

Operational strain.

This Agreement replaces uncertainty with structure.

It replaces exposure with negotiated rights and obligations in law.

It replaces vulnerability with a stable and enforceable framework.

That too is not a marginal achievement.

It is a fundamental one.

SOVEREIGNTY

Madam Speaker,

I also want to briefly address the question of sovereignty directly and without equivocation.

This Treaty does not affect British sovereignty over Gibraltar.

It contains an explicit and comprehensive safeguarding clause.

This makes clear that nothing within it — and no measure adopted under it — prejudices the respective legal positions on sovereignty.

Sovereignty was not and is not on the table.

It is not in the text.

And it is not altered by ratification.

Gibraltar will remain a British Overseas Territory.

That was the position yesterday.

It is the position today.

It will be the position tomorrow.

The Opposition have had the text since 10 February.

It has been made public today.

I would respectfully suggest to those who wish to read the 1000 odd pages that they do so through two lenses:

First, through the sovereignty protection clause itself.

Second, through the practical reality that Spain acts in this framework as the nearest Member State of the European Union, and on behalf of the EU.

That distinction matters.

SECURITY

Moving on, I note that questions have understandably been raised about security.

Let me be clear.

The disappearance of physical frontier infrastructure does not mean the disappearance of the border.

The frontier line remains exactly where it is.

What changes is how controls are exercised and the location of those controls.

The framework provides for structured cooperation, enhanced information exchange, strengthened law enforcement coordination and increased surveillance capacity.

A permanent multi-agency presence in the border area will reinforce that architecture.

Immigration controls will not vanish.

They will be reorganised to reflect the new regime.

Indeed, the sequential operation of Gibraltar controls and Schengen controls will, in many respects, result in a more robust security posture than previously existed.

At every stage of these negotiations, security has been paramount.

It has not been compromised.

It has been reinforced.

CONCLUSION

And so Madam Speaker,

to conclude,

On 31 January 2021, Gibraltar left the European Union.

Yet daily life did not descend into disruption.

The border continued to function.

Today, we publish the legal framework that will govern Gibraltar’s future relationship with the European Union.

This is a Treaty tailored to Gibraltar’s unique geography, economy and social fabric.

It is bespoke.

It is carefully calibrated.

And it is legally secure.

Many believed such an outcome would not be possible.

Yet it has been achieved.

The House will debate the detail in the days ahead.

But today, I welcome the publication of a Treaty that provides Gibraltar with certainty, stability and a forward path.

It is a not perfect, but it represents a safe, secure and beneficial outcome for our people.

And it positions Gibraltar to move confidently into the next chapter of our history.

Thank you.

ENDS