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Spain and the UK have today reached a deal to maintain free movement to and from Gibraltar once the UK formally leaves the EU on Friday.
To avoid a hard border after Brexit, they have agreed that Gibraltar will join the EU's Schengen zone and follow certain EU rules, whilst remaining part of the UK. The plan is to have a six-month transition period and then formalise the new arrangements with a treaty.
The deal was announced by Spanish Foreign Minister Arancha González Laya, just hours before the UK leaves the EU. "With this [agreement], the border is removed, Schengen is applied to Gibraltar... it allows for the lifting of controls between Gibraltar and Spain," said Ms González Laya.
Under the terms of the Gibraltar deal, the EU will have to send Frontex border guards to ensure free movement to and from Gibraltar for at least the next four years. The deal also means Gibraltar complying with EU fair competition rules in areas such as financial policy, the environment and the labour market, Ms González Laya said.
Although the UK has never been part of it, 22 EU states are in the passport-free Schengen zone, as are Norway, Switzerland, Iceland and Liechtenstein. Once Gibraltar joins it, EU citizens arriving from Spain or another Schengen country will avoid passport checks, while people arriving from the UK will have to go through passport control. Under the current tight Covid rules, there are restrictions on UK citizens arriving via Gibraltar's airport.
Despite the fact that the deal does not address the issue of sovereignty over Gibraltar, UK Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab described it a "political framework" to be used as the basis of a separate treaty with the EU regarding the territory. Spain has long disputed British sovereignty over the Rock, which is home to around 34,000 people. In the 2016 EU referendum, the Gibraltarians voted overwhelmingly (96%) to remain.
Raab added "all sides are committed to mitigating the effects of the end of the [Brexit] Transition Period on Gibraltar, and in particular ensure border fluidity, which is clearly in the best interests of the people living on both sides.
"We remain steadfast in our support for Gibraltar and its sovereignty."
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