The United Kingdom
as Gibraltar's advocate in the world
23. As a British Overseas Territory, Gibraltar is
not a nation state. It is not a member of the United Nations;
neither is it an EU member state. In these and in other international
fora, Gibraltar's interests are represented by the United Kingdom.
British Government Ministers—and the United Kingdom Parliament—therefore
have a particular responsibility towards the people of Gibraltar.
We on the Foreign Affairs Committee readily accept this responsibility.
24. In successive Reports, we have drawn attention
to failures by the United Kingdom adequately to meet that responsibility,
for example by failing to rebut some of Spain's unfounded allegations
against Gibraltar.[27]
Our concern was all the greater when, in the course of our last
inquiry, the Secretary of State accused the Government of Gibraltar
of failing to publish its national income accounts.[28]
25. We concluded in our previous Report that
… by publicly questioning the probity of the
Gibraltar Government during the course of the relaunched Brussels
Process talks, the British Government has unwisely increased tension
and suspicion of its motives within Gibraltar.[29]
26. The Government's response was that it has
… consistently made clear the importance it
places on good governance in all our Overseas Territories. Pursuit
of this objective is in the interests of Gibraltar as well as
HMG.[30]
27. The response did not address the point. We went
on to conclude that
… it is highly ironic that the British Government
has given credence to complaints by Spain about law enforcement
and the supervision of financial services in Gibraltar, given
that these areas are the responsibility, not of the Gibraltar
Government, but of the British Government and of the Financial
Services Commission appointed by it.[31]
28. The Government responded that
This conclusion is based on a misunderstanding about
the role of HMG in the public administration of Gibraltar. In
practice, Gibraltar has a significant degree of responsibility
within these areas. In the case of financial services, the Gibraltar
Financial Services Commission is charged with the responsibility
of supervising institutions carrying on financial business in
or from within Gibraltar. The Commission, while appointed by the
Governor with the approval of the Secretary of State, is an independent
body. While no-one can afford to be complacent, it is the Government's
view that the Gibraltar finance industry is properly regulated.[32]
29. The Committee did not misunderstand the role
of HMG in the public administration of Gibraltar. The Governor,
not the Government of Gibraltar, appoints the Financial Services
Commission, with the approval of the Secretary of State, not that
of the Chief Minister. The situation is exactly as stated in our
previous Report, that the British Government and the Commission
appointed by it have responsibility for financial regulation in
Gibraltar, while the British Government and the Royal Gibraltar
Police, whose Commissioner it appoints,[33]
have responsibility for law enforcement. It is disingenuous of
the Government to claim otherwise.
30. There is now a new Governor in Gibraltar who,
we trust, will do all in his power both to ensure that the Government
of Gibraltar continues to fulfil its obligations, and that the
British Government represents the interests of Gibraltar on the
international stage. We were heartened that, even before the arrival
of the new Governor, a robust stance was taken against groundless
allegations by Spain's EU Transport Commissioner concerning the
wreck of the MV Prestige last November off the coast off Galicia.[34]
We conclude that there are positive indications that
the British Government is now sticking up for Gibraltar, and is
no longer prepared to allow unjustified allegations to go unchallenged.
We recommend that the Government adopt this practice as a matter
of policy.
27 Eleventh Report from the Foreign Affairs Committee,
Session 2001-02, Gibraltar, HC 973, paras 46-50; Fourth
Report from the Foreign Affairs Committee, Session 1998-99, Gibraltar,
HC 366, para 57 Back
28
Eleventh Report from the Foreign Affairs Committee, Session 2001-02,
Gibraltar, HC 973, para 89 Back
29
Ibid, para 45 Back
30
Cm 5714 Back
31
Eleventh Report from the Foreign Affairs Committee, Session 2001-02,
Gibraltar, HC 973, para 47 Back
32
Cm 5714 Back
33
HC Deb, 29 Jan 2002, col 234W Back
34
See, for example, "Spain and UK spar over tanker", BBC,
at http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/2485811.stm Back
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