Albares predicts that the agreement on Gibraltar will be drafted by the end of October and in force next year

Madrid – The Minister of Foreign Affairs, European Union and Cooperation, José Manuel Albares, has predicted that the agreement on Gibraltar will be drafted by the end of October and will come into effect next year, with the subsequent demolition of the Fence, once the ratification process is completed.

“The timeline we are considering, which is the one we have communicated to the European Commission, is that the agreement will be drafted by the end of October,” the minister explained in an interview on ‘RNE’, reported by Europa Press.

In this regard, he acknowledged that the “forecasts” are that the Fence will be removed next year, but it is something that “does not depend exclusively on Spain, because the Commission is the one drafting the text” and it must be ratified by both the Council and the European Parliament as well as the British one.

“The Fence will disappear. Gibraltar will be connected to both the Schengen area and the Customs Union. The controls will be carried out by both the Spanish National Police and the Spanish customs agents,” he specified, summarizing some of the key points of the agreement sealed last June between Brussels and London after more than three years of negotiation.

“We are going to have indirect tax harmonization between Gibraltar and the Campo de Gibraltar,” which represents “a real qualitative leap for the Campo de Gibraltar and a great opportunity,” he argued, also highlighting that “environmental standards will be set around European environmental standards” and that the rights of the 15,000 Spanish workers in the Rock are fully guaranteed.

Furthermore, the minister announced that he will appear on October 8 at his own request before the Plenary of the Congress of Deputies to explain the agreement. (September 4)