Concern in Andalucia about Brexit's negative effects leads to Andalusian president meeting Picardo

Hence, it is not surprising that there is to be a meeting next week between the Andalusian president Susana Diaz and the Gibraltar chief minister Fabian Picardo.

In fact, the meeting follows a contribution from the Junta de Andalucia to a report published by the EU Committee of the Regions on the impact of the departure of the United Kingdom and Gibraltar from the European Union, details from which were reported on by PANORAMA this week.

DISCUSSION

The Chief Minister wrote to the President of the Junta, as a consequence of the EU report, in order to have a discussion on the potential consequences of Brexit on businesses and citizens in Gibraltar and in Spain.

A statement from No.6 Convent Place says that Mr Picardo made the point that Gibraltar’s departure from the EU should be handled in a positive and constructive manner that creates the minimum amount of disruption.

The governments of Gibraltar and Andalucia will explore increased cooperation with the objective of generating more economic activity and employment in a way which provides shared benefits and prosperity for all.

The Chief Minister will be meeting with the President of the Regional Government of Andalucia on 25 January in Seville.

Any disruption to freedom of movement of people and goods could have serious consequences for the region, the EU report recognising that around 10,000 Spanish workers cross the frontier to work in Gibraltar, to which must be added the millions of pounds spent in Andalucia from Gibraltar.

It follows therefore that, increasingly, there is pressure on the Spanish Government not only from the Campo area but also from Andalucia itself, which is Spain's largest region, about not upsetting the applecart as it is in nobody's interest.

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Although figures fluctuate, the latest statistics show that there are nearly 13,000 frontier workers entering Gibraltar, mainly Spaniards.

As regards the Spanish, there are 8,000 registered workers in Gibraltar plus another 2,000 who are normally regarded as unregistered, self-employed etc, making up a total of some 10,000.

There are also over 2,300 other British, as opposed to Gibraltarians, who are also classed as frontier workers, which means that they live on the other side of the frontier which, again, privides additional income for the Campo area from accommodation and general expenditure there.

18-01-18 PANORAMAdailyGIBRALTAR