Taking back control: Spain to gain sovereignty over British travellers to Gibraltar thanks to Brexit

UK visitors to Gibraltar could be sent home on the next plane by Spanish frontier officials – even if they have a passport valid for the British Overseas Territory.
Once the post- Brexit agreement between the UK, Gibraltar, Spain and the EU is ratified, visitors to the British Overseas Territory will face two passport checks on arrival. The existing examination by Gibraltar's Borders & Coastguard Agency will be augmented by a Spanish frontier post.
The deal has been constructed to allow a free flow of passengers, vehicles and goods across the land frontier between Gibraltar and Spain. In order to achieve this, Gibraltar must be treated the same as the Schengen area – the passport-free zone that includes almost all the European Union, plus Iceland, Norway and Switzerland.
Consequently, the 'third-country' rules that the Boris Johnson government negotiated for UK citizens will apply to the territory.
Spain will have the final say on whether a UK traveller can enter Gibraltar. Unless they meet the 'Schengen rules' for passport validity and maximum length of stay, they will be flown back to the UK.
As Spain gains control of the territory's border, officials are at pains to stress that Gibraltar will not become part of the Schengen area.
The foreign secretary, David Lammy, said the settlement had tackled 'the last major unresolved issue from our decision to leave the EU, providing much-needed certainty for people and businesses in Gibraltar'.
He said: 'The deal removes another obstacle to closer ties with our EU friends and, crucially, protects British sovereignty over the Rock.'
But the red tape that British travellers face will face is exactly the same as any Schengen frontier post. Because the Gibraltar-Spain border controls will be removed – allowing free movement as far as the Arctic and the Baltic – there is no alternative to treating UK arrivals as entering the zone
At present British visitors to Gibraltar must simply have a valid passport. The only rule: 'Your passport must not expire during your planned visit to Gibraltar.'
When the agreement takes effect, British passports will need to meet two stricter requirements:
Initially, British travellers will be stamped in and out. Once the EU's much-delayed entry-exit system takes effect, they will need to provide a facial biometric and fingerprints.
Customs rules for the European Union will also be applied, meaning that no dairy or meat products can be taken from the UK into Gibraltar.
In addition, the special status of Gibraltar to enable extended stays in the Mediterranean will end. At present, British holidaymakers can remain as long as they wish in the territory. Time spent in Gibraltar does not count towards the '90 days in any 180 days' limit that the UK negotiated for British travellers after Brexit.
UK citizens who are nearing the maximum 90-day stay in Spain or elsewhere can currently cross the land border into Gibraltar and continue to enjoy Mediterranean life until the calendar permits them to return to the Schengen area.
This option will cease, and could mean that UK long-stayers travel across to Morocco instead.

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Learn with AIFact CheckingText to SpeechAI Summary

Related Articles

BBC News

17 minutes ago

• BBC News

Norfolk council leader sorry over 'poor people' Facebook post

A council leader apologised "unreservedly" for posting a picture of a steak dinner on Facebook with the words: "Wonder what all the poor people are doing?"Norfolk County Council's Conservative leader Kay Mason Billig said it was a private joke that had been taken out of context and the comments were "not intended to be about anyone else".A copy of her post, which showed a tomahawk steak, red wine and a salad, was shared with the Eastern Daily council's Liberal Democrat group leader Brian Watkins said it made "a mockery of many in our county struggling to make ends meet" and called for her to resign. Mason Billig, who has led the council since 2023, said: "Of course I apologise unreservedly if I have caused any offence, it was never my intention to do so."She said the image – taken from her personal Facebook page – was being "twisted into something it isn't"."My husband and I have sometimes called ourselves 'the poor people'," she explained."It's a private joke as we live fairly modestly, so when we have a treat, we will sometimes post about it."It's not intended to be about anyone else and is no reflection on people who are less well off than ourselves."I am deeply disappointed that someone has decided to be this horrible when they must certainly know it's actually self deprecation." While the post was made on her personal page, University of Essex professor of government Paul Whiteley said politicians had to be careful using social media."To somebody who didn't know her, it would sound like she was being rude about people who are poor, even if that's not what she meant," he said."That's what it will sound like to the vast majority of people."Watkins, whose Liberal Democrats are the main opposition group on the council, said Mason Billig "should consider her resignation immediately"."A councillor is never off duty. These comments make a mockery of many in our county struggling to make ends meet."Labour group leader Steve Morphew said Mason Billig was "out of touch". Follow Norfolk news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.

Telegraph

22 minutes ago

• Telegraph

Palestine Action must be labelled terrorist group, say Farage and Jenrick

Palestine Action should be proscribed as a terrorist organisation after its activists breached security at an air base to damage two RAF planes, Robert Jenrick and Nigel Farage have said. The pair joined other senior politicians in demanding that the group should be banned over its 'illegal' and 'extremist' actions after activists broke into RAF Brize Norton and sprayed red paint into the engines of two Airbus Voyager aircraft. Mr Jenrick, the shadow justice secretary, told Sir Keir Starmer: 'You are the Prime Minister – do something. Ban Palestine Action. Investigate the security breach.' Mr Farage, the leader of Reform UK, said: 'Palestine Action must be proscribed as a terrorist organisation after the attack on RAF planes at Brize Norton.' Proscribing Palestine Action would make it illegal to be a member of the group, to invite support for it or to wear clothing or carry flags or placards backing it. Anyone caught doing so would face up to 14 years in prison. It would put the group on a par with membership of the Islamic State, Hamas or Al-Qaeda. Lord Walney, a former government adviser on political violence and disruption, said: 'The Government must now act to ban Palestine Action after this grotesque breach of military security. 'With Iran's nuclear programme on the brink and Britain facing rising threats from abroad, we shouldn't let these criminal activists act like the Ayatollah's apparatchiks by attacking the country from within. 'Employees at the workplaces they target have been systematically terrorised by Palestine Action for too long – this is the moment for ministers to proscribe the group as terrorists or enact the new sanctions recommended in my review submitted to Downing Street and the Home Office.' Suella Braverman, a former home secretary, said: 'This is not a legitimate protest. These are the actions of militant extremists who are undermining our national security. Palestine Action should be proscribed and face the full force of the law.' Kemi Badenoch, the Tory leader, is understood to support a ban and urged the Government and police to ensure that the activists responsible faced the 'full force of the law'. 'The security breach at Brize Norton is deeply is not lawful protest, it is politically motivated criminality,' she said. 'We must stop tolerating terrorist or extremist groups that seek to undermine our society. The full force of the law must come down on those responsible.' David Taylor, the Labour MP for Hemel Hempstead, also called for Palestine Action to be proscribed, saying its protest at Brize Norton amounted to 'sabotage'. He added: 'This group have engaged in illegal activity – smashing into defence sites, vandalising property and disrupting key infrastructure. These are not isolated incidents – they are part of a coordinated campaign of unlawful direct action. 'Such behaviour puts lives at risk, undermines public safety and is against British values. It is time for the Government to take a firmer stance. I believe Palestine Action should now be considered for proscription under the Terrorism Act. We cannot allow groups who glorify and incite violence to operate unchecked under the guise of activism.' Palestine Action has been involved in previous violent protests. In January last year, it vandalised an office of the logistics company Kuehne+Nagel in Milton Keynes, smashing windows and spraying the building with paint. Last March, it claimed responsibility for spray-painting a historic portrait of Arthur Balfour at Trinity College, Cambridge. Palestine Action said the action was taken because of the 1917 Balfour declaration, in which the UK backed a separate state for Jewish people. Last November, members broke a glass cabinet in the University of Manchester's Chemistry Building and stole two busts of Chaim Weizmann, the first president of Israel and a former lecturer at the university. In March this year, members of Palestine Action threw red paint on the Old Schools building at the University of Cambridge, calling on the university to divest from companies selling arms to the Israeli military.

The Guardian

23 minutes ago

• The Guardian

Moment historic vote on legalising assisted dying in England and Wales passes

Assisted dying is set to become law after a historic vote in parliament, as MPs passed Kim Leadbeater's bill by 314 to 291 votes, a majority of 23, to legalise the procedure for terminally ill people. Keir Starmer backed the bill which will now head to the House of Lords, though peers are not expected to block its progress. It will give those with less than six months to live in England and Wales the right to an assisted death, after approval from two doctors and a panel including a psychiatrist, social worker and senior lawyer