It started with a phone call at 11pm on Thursday night from the chief executive of the Borders & Coastguard Agency [BCA] to the Gibraltar Government, alerting senior officials that Spain had terminated interim immigration measures that allowed Gibraltar red ID card holders to cross from Gibraltar without having their passports stamped.
By 7am on Friday, that step had triggered chaos at the border.
The Spanish decision caught everyone by surprise.
“It appears that the instruction was given in writing by an officer of the Spanish Policia Nacional in La Linea, of the rank of Inspector, who was not authorised to give that instruction by his superior,” No.6 Convent Place said later in a statement.
Against the backdrop of ongoing talks for a UK/EU treaty on Gibraltar’s post-Brexit relations with the bloc, the Gibraltar Government had long vowed to take reciprocal steps and mirror any changes on the Spanish side.
On Friday, it put those words into action.
Between 7am and 8am, border traffic heading into Gibraltar ground to a halt as cross-border workers were asked to produce passports and stamped as they entered Gibraltar. Normally, they can cross with ID cards and many do not have passports.
There were tense scenes too as Guardia Civil officers tried to disband a group of angry workers who blocked the vehicular exit from the border compound into Spain.
The gridlock at the border was felt across organisations and businesses in Gibraltar, as daily commuters waited to cross unable to get to their places of work including healthcare facilities.
There was urgent contact between authorities in Gibraltar and Spain and the measures were eased as the morning progressed, with Spanish authorities finally confirming at 11.30am that they had reinstated the interim measures.
“It was a temporary situation that caused some queues early in the day,” a spokesperson for Spain’s Ministry of the Interior told the Chronicle.
“By 11 a.m., normality had already been restored.”
But the incident has focused minds on what failure to reach agreement on the treaty could mean in practice.
Juan Franco, the Mayor of La Linea, summed it up and said: “This is a taste of what could happen.”
“Today must serve as a point of inflexion and an opportunity to find solutions, because there is no Plan B.”
TREATY BACKDROP
The events on Friday unfolded in the final stages of the negotiation for a UK/EU treaty on Gibraltar and after recent public statements pointing to tension between the negotiating parties.
Earlier this week, Jose Manuel Albares, Spain’s Minister for Foreign Affairs, said the UK and Gibraltar must decide whether to accept the “comprehensive, balanced, and pragmatic” proposals made by Spain and the EU or face the implications of an EU-wide change to border controls as from November.
But in reply, Chief Minister Fabian Picardo urged Spain to accept “reasonable and well-balanced” proposals for a UK/EU treaty on Gibraltar, or “condemn us all” to tough border controls that will complicate the lives of workers and ordinary people.
Both ministers were referring to the EU’s Entry/Exit System, which was due to come into force on November 10 and had focused the minds of negotiators amid concern it would cause severe disruption at the border unless a treaty was agreed beforehand.
The EES will mean an end to interim measures applied to Gibraltar Red ID card holders to date while negotiations are under way.
The automated system requires non-EU travellers to register their biometric details including fingerprints and a facial scan, which would be used by border officers to check travellers every time they entered the Schengen zone.
It would also limit Gibraltar red ID card holders, who have so far been exempted from normal Schengen controls, to no more than 90 days in any 180-day period inside the Schengen zone.
On Thursday night, even as Spanish controls were tightened at the border, treaty negotiators were given a reprieve of sorts when the EU again delayed the introduction of the EES and scrapped the November 10 start date.
EU Home Affairs Commissioner Ylva Johansson announced the decision after Germany, France the Netherlands said they were not ready.
"We had a target date of the 10th of November but after in-depth discussions with Member States and stakeholders, it’s clear that this is not going to be the 10th of November," Ms Johansson told reporters.
"I hope we can start as soon as possible but there's no new timeline so far.”
The events on Friday caused alarm in communities on both sides of the border and dispelled any doubts there may have been as to the impact that Brexit could have on frontier flow.
“Given the sporadic nature of the manner in which Spain has either through direct instructions, or at the whim of Spanish Police officers, decided that it can lift interim measures at any time, it is best for those who need to cross the frontier into Gibraltar to always have their passports with them in case we are forced to require them, as we were today,” Chief Minister Fabian Picardo said.
“If the benefits currently afforded to Gibraltarians are undone, HM Government of Gibraltar will immediately reciprocate and I know that every Spanish worker and every visitor will understand that we have to act on this reciprocal basis.”
“It is the last thing we want to do and as a socialist it depresses me greatly that, as usual, politics is being used to damage the interests of working people and not to assist them.”
“I will continue betting on a UK/EU treaty, working towards it, putting sovereignty neutral proposals to resolve the last issues on the table and giving my all so that this process is a success.”
“The ball is in Spain's court to accept those reasonable, balanced and imaginative proposals that guarantee the safety and security of the Schengen Area and the integrity of the Single Market.”
“This is best achieved by the ongoing negotiations and Gibraltar will not be forced to submit by pressure tactics such as the measures implemented in the last 12 hours.”
“Additionally, we have a chance to continue with the mutually beneficial interim arrangements we have in place now that the EES is delayed, and I hope we will do so, whilst not letting the deal slip any longer than it has to.”
“I am on the side of ordinary Gibraltarians and working people from Gibraltar and cross frontier workers.”
“I want this to work for all of us.”
“I sincerely hope that incidents like this are the storm before the calm and that we can resolve matters at the negotiating table in a way that works for all of us and can be implemented with public support.”
PRECEDENT
Friday’s development was not the first sign of the potential for tighter restrictions at the border as negotiators seek to find a way through the remaining areas of disagreement in a process that has dragged on for three years.
Earlier this week, the Chronicle reported that the BA flight to London on Wednesday evening was cancelled after Spanish border guards refused to follow established protocols allowing passengers to transit to Malaga airport when their flight is diverted.
The BA flight was diverted to the Spanish airport due to adverse weather conditions in Gibraltar, but when it emerged that Spanish Policia Nacional officers would not allow non-EU passengers in Gibraltar to be ferried to Malaga, the airline took the decision to cancel the return leg.
Spain and Gibraltar established protocols some months ago that allow passengers due to fly from Gibraltar to cross into Spain with their travel and flight documents if their service is diverted to Malaga.
The reasons for the decision by Spanish border guards on Wednesday were unclear, though a spokesperson for No.6 Convent Place said it had been “a unilateral action” by the duty Policia Nacional Inspector that was “not supported by the Interior Ministry in Madrid”.
The Gibraltar Government was in contact with Spanish authorities throughout the incident and the situation was resolved late Wednesday evening.
SHOCK
The reciprocal measures put in place by the Gibraltar Government on Friday came as a shock to many in Spain.
Spanish authorities have long claimed publicly that EU cross-border workers would be able cross freely irrespective of the outcome of the treaty negotiation, in part thanks to the protections enshrined in the Withdrawal Agreement.
Just this week, reflecting the changes that the EES would bring about once it becomes operational, the Spanish Foreign Minister sought to play down any impact on Spanish and other EU citizens.
“It would not affect Spaniards or Schengen area citizens, who will continue to enter and exit normally,” he said.
Friday’s events, however, show that EU travellers would face a much stickier border if a mutually beneficial deal is not reached, in particular the 15,000-strong cross-border workforce who rely on fluidity for their jobs.
Only a third of the cross-border workforce, around 5,000 people, enjoy the protections afforded by the Withdrawal Agreement, ensuring the continue to have the same rights they had before Brexit.
But even they would be subject to tighter immigration controls to confirm their identity and employment status, much the same as the rest of the workforce.
None of this is new.
In a technical notice issued last year, the Gibraltar Government made the situation clear.
“In the event of a non-negotiated outcome the Government will require every frontier worker to comply with equivalent requirements to those imposed on Gibraltar residents to cross to Spain,” the notice said.
“This is the principle of ‘reciprocity’ which is commonly accepted in international relations.”
“As a result, cross frontier workers who are not covered by the Withdrawal Agreement should ensure they have passports available for inspection on entry into Gibraltar.”
“Those who are covered by the Withdrawal Agreement will have to demonstrate this through the daily provision of valid travel and identity documents also.”
RECIPROCAL MEASURES
On GBC on Thursday, Chief Minister Fabian Picardo signalled the type of reciprocal measures that Gibraltar would take if a deal was not agreed by the time the EES comes into operation.
“I have to be very clear with you, and I have to be very clear with every person who crosses the frontier, whether they are a frontier worker or not, that there will be reciprocal measures in Gibraltar,” Mr Picardo said.
“We will soon be advertising those in plain English and plain Spanish to those who cross the frontier.”
“They will need to understand that to cross the frontier into Gibraltar, once EES has happened, everybody will need a passport.”
“If they're not a British citizen, they will have their passport stamped.”
“Eventually, we will be implementing a visa for which there will be a cost.”
“If you are a worker that is covered by the Withdrawal Agreement, you will have certain benefits.”
“But of the 15,000 cross frontier workers there are today, only one third, 5000, are covered by the withdrawal agreement.”
“So 10,000 workers will not have the benefit of not being covered by the Withdrawal Agreement and they will have to comply with full obligations under the new regime.”
“This will be as onerous for those coming into Gibraltar as it will be for those of us from Gibraltar going into Spain.”
“That's how immigration works. That's what we're looking at. That's what this negotiation is trying to avoid. That's why it's so important.”
CONCERNS
There are concerns though that applying reciprocal measures will have a major negative impact on organisations and businesses who rely on cross-border workers, including Gibraltar’s health and care services.
That impact was already felt on Friday.
Mr Picardo said the Gibraltar Government had conducted studies on this but declined to share the findings when asked during his GBC interview.
Owen Smith, chairperson of the Gibraltar Federation of Small Businesses, said he had received several “angry phone calls” from business owners who had turned up for work on Friday morning only to find their staff could not get in.
While most businesses understood the brewing potential for problems at the border and had advised staff to prepare by ensuring they have the right travel documentation, in particular passports, many cross-border workers still rely on ID cards to enter Gibraltar on a day-to-day basis.
The practical impact on Friday morning was that many businesses and their employees were caught unawares, causing disruption in opening up and providing services to customers.
Mr Smith said that while there was a broad understanding of the reason for reciprocal measures at the border, businesses were caught by surprise on Friday.
“The amount of disruption would be hugely reduced if people could be forewarned, even if just by a few hours,” Mr Smith told the Chronicle.
“Many businesses have prepared for this by ensuring their staff have passports but today's action caught them unaware.”
“Some businesses did not see Friday’s snap decision as a good move, even if they understood the reasons why it was taken.”