Gibraltar will retaliate against EU citizens if Spain uses Brexit veto
The Gibraltar government it has warned it would review European Union citizens’ rights living and working in the Rock if the Spanish government invokes the veto to exclude the region from a Brexit transition deal between the UK and the EU.
Gibraltar’s deputy chief minister Dr Joseph Garcia said the veto clause given to Spain is illegal and, if used, his government would not think twice about reviewing the rights of EU citizens who live and work in Gibraltar and revisiting the pensions plan given to Spaniards who worked in the region before Franco closed the border in 1969.
“We’ve taken advice from the most senior UK lawyers and our advice is that the clause is illegal and our position is that if Spain exercises a veto under that clause, we will challenge it in court – whatever that may do to the whole of Brexit,” he said.
García has argued that Gibraltar would no longer be obliged to allow and provide EU citizens with rights that go in accord with a transition and withdrawal period becuase that would not apply to the region.
“There are 2,000 EU nationals who live in Gibraltar, quite apart from the workers. Some of them obviously work here as well. Eight hundred of those are Spanish and they’ve chosen to make Gibraltar their home.
“We welcome them in Gibraltar, but if transition and withdrawal is not going to apply to us – and it includes chapters specifically on citizens’ rights and workers’ rights and frontier workers and what have you – then we would be free to do whatever we like on those elements as well.”
The 13,000 workers who cross the border from Spain to Gibraltar everyday are most likely to be affected by these changes.