May 11 - Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond Meets With Chief Minister Fabian Picardo
The Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond is on a short visit to Gibraltar to reaffirm the strong and enduring relationship between the UK and Gibraltar.
This morning he was introduced to with service men and women from the Royal Navy, the Gibraltar Defence Police, the Royal Gibraltar Police, HM Customs and the Royal Gibraltar Regiment by Commander British Forces, Commodore Ian McGhie and His Excellency the Governor Lt Gen Edward Davis at the Naval Base.
This was followed by a meeting with the Chief Minister Fabian Picardo and Deputy Chief Minister Dr Joseph Garcia at No 6, followed by a walk down Main Street as he headed to the Stronger In offices in Main Street to meet with young campaigners.
At the start of the press conference at No 6, Mr Hammon paid tribute to Royal Gibraltar Regiment soldier Private Matthew Boyd who died in Brecon, Wales, at the weekend.
He continued: “I am delighted to be in Gibraltar with Chief Minister Picardo seeing for myself the enduring spirit which makes the people of Gibraltar proud to be both Gibraltarian and British.
“I was very pleased this morning to have the opportunity to meet some of the service men and women who work so hard round the clock to keep Gibraltar safe and secure.
“And I am grateful to Gibraltar for the contribution that it makes for the UK’s wider defence and security objectives, and I know that this dedication to duty will continue in the future.
“This is by no means my first visit to Gibraltar but it is as Foreign Secretary and it comes at a historic moment in our joint history, because on the 23rd of June the people of the UK and Gibraltar will be heading to the polls to vote on whether the UK should remain in the European Union.
“And Gibraltar has done much in recent years to develop and diversify its economy and to turn itself into a world-class financial centre, and the success of that endeavour is witnessed by the standard of living that you enjoy and the GDP per capita that the people of Gibraltar enjoy.
“This economy that you have built here flourishes through access to the European Union Single Market and through the ability of workers to cross the border from Spain.
“The economy here provides an excellent example of why it is in our interests to remain inside the European Union and I hope that the people of the UK and the people of Gibraltar will on June 23rd make clear that they understand the importance of the European Union to their future prosperity, security and stability.
“I genuinely believe that the threat of leaving the EU is as big a threat to Gibraltar’s future security and Gibraltar’s future sovereignty as the more traditional threats that we routinely talk about. Gibraltar’s future is within the European single market and let’s work very hard to make sure that that decision goes the right way on 23rd June.”
Mr Picardo said: “It’s a pleasure to welcome Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond to Gibraltar.
“I have been working with Philip first in his capacity in his capacity of Secretary of State for Defence and more recently as Foreign Secretary.
“In all his dealings with my Government, he has been supportive of Gibraltar and our enduring relationship with the United Kingdom, and our right to freely and democratically determine our future.
“Today we have had the chance to discuss the opportunities and challenges Gibraltar and United Kingdom face and how best we can continue to work in partnership in facing those challenges and making the most of those opportunities.
“We have this morning considered, together with the Deputy Chief Minister, the potential outcomes of the referendum on whether the United Kingdom and Gibraltar should remain or leave the European Union.
“We have all agreed that the best future for Britain and for Gibraltar is for there to be a vote to remain within the EU on the 23rd of June.
“We have, of course, also discussed a number of other subjects on which we have regular contact and in respect of which you will be or have been handed a note already.”
During the Foreign Secretary’s visit to Gibraltar today, he and the Chief Minister of Gibraltar made the following joint statement:
· Today we reaffirmed the strong and enduring relationship between the UK and Gibraltar – and recognised Gibraltar’s contribution to the diverse British family. We jointly paid tribute to the enduring Gibraltarian ambition and spirit, which has built a modern, multicultural and environmentally conscious society on the Mediterranean, proud to be both Gibraltarian and British.
· We celebrated the 90th birthday of Her Majesty The Queen and noted the steadfast loyalty of the people of Gibraltar to their sovereign.
· This ambition and spirit has turned Gibraltar into a success-story across a number of areas. Gibraltar is increasingly a cultural centre; its high-tech economy is booming and its finance centre providing a world-class, well-regulated gateway to the European Union. Its new University will help spread the seed of learning across the entire region.
· We discussed the large number of development projects currently underway, funded largely by the private sector, and how these will assist in the further growth of Gibraltar's GDP and the continued diversification of the Gibraltar economy, in particular the development of a new marina, commercial and residential units on the eastside.
· We welcomed Gibraltar’s lead on tax transparency and highlighted the example it could provide to other jurisdictions around the globe
· We agreed that remaining in a reformed European Union would ensure both Gibraltar and the UK were stronger, safer and better off. It would give Gibraltar and Gibraltarians the best possible chance to continue building their remarkable success story.
· We recognised the vital importance of the EU referendum to Gibraltar and called on all those residents of Gibraltar eligible to vote to have their say in this historic decision.
· We recalled the UK’s continued commitment to stand by Gibraltar, in particular the UK’s commitment that it would never enter into arrangements under which the people of Gibraltar would pass under the sovereignty of another state against their freely and democratically expressed wishes, nor would it enter into a process of sovereignty negotiations with which Gibraltar is not content.
· We also discussed the continued strategic importance of Gibraltar and the UK’s continued commitment to doing everything necessary to defend Gibraltar’s sovereignty and security. We paid tribute to the men and women of the British Armed Forces who work day-in-day out to achieve these aims displaying their world-class professionalism. We agreed that Gibraltar would continue to have an important role to play in delivering the wider vision set out in the UK’s Strategic Defence and Security Review.
· We also paid tribute to the hard-working officers of the Royal Gibraltar Police, Gibraltar Defence Police, HM Customs Gibraltar and all other agencies who contribute to keeping Gibraltar safe, and called for increased levels of cooperation with Spanish colleagues in this area.
· Finally, we underlined both the UK’s and Gibraltar’s ultimate desire to return to the Trilateral Forum for Dialogue with Spain as soon as possible.
· The UK and Gibraltar will continue to stand by together as we move forward to face the challenges and opportunities of the 21st century.
{fcomment}
