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The possibility of there being no agreement following negotiations between the EU and the United Kingdom on the post-Brexit future of Gibraltar has prompted the Junta de Andalucá to call on the Spanish government to come up with an alternative plan.
Regional minister Antonio Sanz on Tuesday 15 October criticised how the government of Pedro Sánchez has conducted negotiations, pointing out the government has been naive to announce an agreement is imminent, when one has yet to be reached.
The Andalusian regional government has been criticising the national government for weeks for not informing it of the progress of negotiations in which British and Gibraltarian representatives have been on one side of the table and the Spanish government on the other. The Junta has not participated in the negotiations despite many of the issues addressed falling within the region's responsibilities.
The Spanish government has left substantial issues for the Campo de Gibraltar out of the negotiations, Sanz pointed out, such as the financial balance between the two locations, environmental issues, the safety of Spanish fishermen and guarantees for the port of Algeciras, which could be exposed to unfair competition.
The minister also criticised that the Spanish government is not working on an alternative plan for Gibraltar in the event an agreement is not signed, which at this point seems the most likely scenario, and demanded the government promote it before the European Union.
Meanwhile, the president of the Junta, Juanma Moreno, welcomed the new British ambassador to Spain, Sir Alex Ellis, at the Palacio de San Telmo on Tuesday.
In a statement regarding the meeting, the Andalusian government pointed out that for the region the "understanding between Spain and the United Kingdom is fundamental" for the future of relations over Gibraltar, which is why it considers the specific agreement between the European Union and the United Kingdom on the Rock to be of "maximum interest" because of the hope that "it will establish the framework for social, economic, cultural and commercial coexistence".
The Junta pointed out as "key" that "the commitments for an agreement between the two countries on Gibraltar "that brings confidence, legal certainty and stability to the population" should be "reaffirmed".
Andalucía is the third favourite destination for British tourists in Spain, a fact to which Moreno added that "there are more than 90,000 British people living in Andalucía and more than 20,000 Andalusians living in the United Kingdom".
The Andalusian government also said the region "is attractive for British investors", pointing out data such as the increase in investments of almost 20% in 2023 over the previous year or "the 195 million euros that British companies have allocated to Andalucía in sectors such as telecommunications, accommodation services or education".
In the case of tourism data, Moreno pointed out that more than 2.5 million tourists were British in 2023, making the UK the region's main foreign market.
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