The British Minister of State for Europe, Fernando Sampedro, has explained that the agreement being negotiated by Brussels and the United Kingdom regarding Gibraltar includes the introduction of indirect taxes on goods imported or manufactured in the Rock to ensure "fair competition" on both sides of the Fence.
He indicated this before the Joint Commission for the EU in response to a question from PP Deputy Gonzalo Robles, who made it clear that the PP cannot give the Government a "blank check" on this matter without first knowing the contents of the agreement.
"We need to know the details and, above all, we need to be assured that this does not serve to consolidate a historically unfair situation," he stated, denouncing that Gibraltar is a "tax haven" and demanding "comparable taxation" on both sides of the Fence.
Sampedro acknowledged that one of the concerns is ensuring that the planned removal of the Fence does not create "distortions" in the European internal market. Hence, the New Year's Eve Agreement sealed between Madrid and London on December 31, 2020, which serves as the basis for the negotiations, already contemplated "the application of indirect and special taxes, with special attention to the most sensitive goods and products" such as tobacco, alcohol, and fuel.
The text currently being negotiated, he added, foresees the application in Gibraltar of indirect taxes "on goods imported or manufactured in the colony," although he did not want to go into more detail "out of prudence and to avoid hindering the negotiation."
ACHIEVING THE LEAST POSSIBLE DIFFERENTIAL
However, he made it clear that the goal is to "achieve the smallest possible differential between the tax rates" applied in Gibraltar and the adjacent Spanish region. "We are clearly aiming to ensure that our internal market, and particularly the trade in the Campo de Gibraltar, is not harmed, preventing illicit trafficking," he assured.
Furthermore, Robles warned against rushing to finalize an agreement for the sake of the agreement itself rather than its content. "That would be a huge mistake," he argued, insisting that "we should never rush into such important matters and should not sacrifice the substance for the urgency of the moment."
The PP deputy admitted that the current circumstances, with the European Parliament elections from June 6 to 9 and the UK elections on July 4, may justify speeding up the negotiations but emphasized that it should not be at the cost of "conceding unacceptable terms."
THE PP DEMANDS TO KNOW THE GOVERNMENT'S RED LINES
He also reiterated his criticism that in the negotiations between the EU and the UK, where Spain participates on the European side, the Chief Minister of Gibraltar, Fabian Picardo, has been part of the British delegation, and there has been no representation from either the Andalusian Government or the Campo de Gibraltar. He also called on the Government to reveal its "red lines" in these negotiations.
For his part, Sampedro assured that the Government continues "working with the European Commission to achieve an agreement between the EU and the UK on Gibraltar that will bring confidence, legal certainty, and stability to the lives and quality of life of nearly 300,000 Andalusians in the Campo de Gibraltar."
In this regard, he indicated that "technical-level contacts are ongoing," independent of the dual electoral deadlines, and reiterated, as Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares has said on multiple occasions, that "nothing is agreed until everything is agreed."