The mayor of Algeciras and senator, José Ignacio Landaluce, had an extensive list of questions for the Minister of Foreign Affairs, José Manuel Albares, during the Government's control session on Tuesday. Next week, a meeting will be held in Madrid to which the eight mayors of the Campo de Gibraltar and the president of the Mancomunidad de Municipios, Susana Pérez, are invited.
Landaluce has raised several doubts about the agreement that have not yet been dispelled, concerning important issues such as the transit of people, the joint use of the airport, the possibility for residents of the Campo de Gibraltar to voice their concerns and correct aspects of this imminent pact in time, as well as a new but equally worrying issue: the risk for the port of Algeciras of having an open border with Gibraltar, affecting its competitiveness.
On one hand, Landaluce demands from Foreign Affairs that in the meeting with the mayors of the Campo de Gibraltar "we can know the agreement, contribute, listen, and be heard", so that "we can make known our criteria and concerns". In this regard, he reminds that the residents of the Campo de Gibraltar "are the great connoisseurs of the reality of the region, we want to be able to present our proposals and contributions to this agreement long before it becomes effective".
Landaluce emphasizes that "we do want an agreement, but not just any agreement, so we demand to know its terms, to be heard, and that our requests can be incorporated".
Additionally, Landaluce asks "how will the transit of people be organised" through the Schengen area once the treaty is materialised.
At the same time, he points out that "if we talk about transportation, and taking into account that the Port of Algeciras is just 4.5 miles away, the Port of Gibraltar under no circumstances can lose competitiveness against the appearance of a new direct competitor, which does not have the European Union's taxes and our port does", the Andalusian senator has stated.
Regarding the airport, he stated that "we want to know under what conditions this joint use will be, as well as how the transit of people through the Schengen territory will be organised, where there must be the National Police and the Civil Guard", he has requested to the minister.
In terms of environment and taxation, the popular leader has asked about "how environmental aspects will be managed, such as untreated sewage spills into the sea; the application by the European Union of taxes on fuel supply; or pollution rates (E.T.S.).
The senator has also referred to other issues such as fiscal matters with tax dumping, money laundering, and tobacco smuggling; the appropriation of sea land, "which Gibraltar gains to build luxury hotel complexes, or to seize ship anchorages in waters that belong to Spain", he emphasised.
Finally, José Ignacio Landaluce has had words for Spanish workers who have spent their working lives in Gibraltar, "so that their pensions are regulated once they retire".