Aug 06 - Hain Urges UK Government to Re-Open Joint Sovereignty Negotiations
Former UK Minister for Europe, Peter Hain, who stood at the forefront of possible shared sovereignty negotiations between the UK Government and the Spanish Government in 2002 has urged the Government to reopen negotiations with Spain.
Speaking to BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, Mr. Hain explained that these negotiations needed to be re-visited. Speaking on former negotiations that were led by Tony Blair’s New Labour Government, Mr. Hain explained that it was a historic opportunity to have joint sovereignty, which would have protected Gibraltarians’ way of life.
Blair and Hain’s proposal for joint sovereignty was met with a resounding ‘No’ from Gibraltarians who voted unanimously to remain British.
UKIP Leader Nigel Farage has today suggested that Gibraltar should have their own Member of UK Parliament, to relay their concerns. Speaking on ITV’s ‘Daybreak’ this morning, he said, ‘what I want to see is us saying to Gibraltar “right let’s integrate you more deeply in the UK, let’s give you your own member of Parliament in Westminster, and let’s send Spain a message, we are not going to negotiate.”’
