I wrote a blog yesterday that touched on the subject of Gibraltar. My reason was to comment on what I considered to be the inappropriate priorities of William Hague when discussing Brexit. It was reported that he thought it likely that Spain would exploit its claim to Gibraltar when negotiating the debacle that Brexit represents. My opinion was, in summary, that given there are so many other vastly more important issues to worry about than Gibraltar when undertaking these negotiations then this seemed to be a wholly inappropriate prioritisation representing a world view from a long gone era. I mentioned in support of my case the fact that Gibraltar has no real strategic relevance left to the UK and that it is a tax haven.
I stress, this article was essentially about Hague and not Gibraltar as such, but it certainly provoked a reaction.
First it was claimed Gibraltar has military significance. This was easily dismissed. When the RAF can't be bothered to keep a plane there any more and say the base only has strategic significance to support British sovereignty over Gibraltar I think we can safely say that there is of little wider significance.
Then it was claimed that Gibraltar is not a tax haven. This is nonsense: it offers special tax regimes to induce relocation of businesses solely for tax reasons. I mentioned gaming as an example and this is unambiguously true. I also referred to the deliberate supply of secrecy that the Gibraltar government provides to those incorporating companies in its jurisdiction and that this is now widely agreed to be a key tax haven identifier and a major boost to those wishing to evade their legal obligations elsewhere. The Tax Justice Network Financial Secrecy Index makes the case. Much abuse about this flowed, but it always does from tax havens: the volume of invective is, perhaps, one of the surest indicators that the claim that a place is a tax haven is justified.
Both issues missed the major points though. The first of these relates back to Hague's priority ranking. He may think Gibraltar is important, but I don't. When the UK is leaving the EU; when the Union faces its demise; when Ireland faces its greatest economic, social and political crisis for a century; when the UK economy is starting to suffer what will almost certainly be the greatest self imposed economic disaster imposed on the British economy ever and when the strain to our international relations will be quite phenomenal on all fronts then to suggest that Gibraltar is a priority is absurd. That was the fundamental point I was making.
The secondary one was that the arrogance of all the UK tax havens who now want to assert their Britishness, their right to self determination, and simultaneously the duty of the U.K. to both listen to and take heed of their concerns is quite staggering, in my opinion. I offered varying logic depending upon the position of the commentator.
If the claim was that Gibraltar was British and so must be heard then I pointed out that in a British context they are less than half a parliamentary constituency and so carry about as much sway as any other constituency might, which is none at all.
Alternatively, if the claim made was that Gibraltar has a right self determination my suggestion is very clear: go and find a partner other than the UK or Spain right now to make sure you keep a border open. The U.K. can no longer help here, and will be enormously harmful to Gibraltar when a hard border with Spain is imposed, so Gibraltar needs another EU state to adopt it, but I realise not Spain. Then Gibraltar may keep the EU ties it wants.
And if the claim was Britishness? There I despair. When the very essence of Britishness may be disappearing this just shows a complete lack of understanding of awareness of what is happening in the UK. To somehow think in that case that Gibraltarian Britishness is a priority right now is, to bring me back to my opening remarks, really rather arrogant and naive at one and the same time.
As a matter of fact Brexit is very bad news for all the UK's tax havens. To be polite, the convenient cover the UK has been able to provide for the abuse they have and still do facilitate will be lost. So too will their passports change status. And there is no guarantee at all that the UK post Brexit will need them when it could, if it wanted (although heaven forbid) be a tax haven in its own right without needing these places as satellite offices.
The one thing Gibraltar will not have in all this then is continuity of its current arrangement based upon an anachronistic old settlement updated by the UK's admission to the EU. It seems, however, that Gibraltar thinks its world can continue uninterrupted and that the UK will put itself on the line for them. It's time they smelt the coffee, like the rest of us are.
Let me finally then return to the politics of this which are implicit in what I wrote yesterday. If it turns out that an Overseas Territory tax haven that has no substantial strategic significance is an obstacle to progress in securing a proper deal for the people of the U.K. as a whole if we have to go through with Brexit then my message is very clear. It is that the people of the U.K. come first. Which is why I said we could, and in that case should, say goodbye to Gibraltar. I have no doubt that is right. I have nothing to apologise for in saying that then. Which, I would also puts me in a better position than Gibraltar, who need to offer some serious apologies for (and reform) their tax haven activities, end their commitment to tax competition and as a result show they want to play a part in an integrated world. Then they might be listened to. Right now, hot air, as evidenced by the volume of comments yesterday, is all they seem to have.
NB: I am very committed today. Comments may take time to moderate.
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oh boy …you again…..Gib bashing again I see…..hasnt it occurred to you that no one in Gib gives a rock monkey what you think
Has it occurred to you that I am addressing a UK audience?
has it occurred to you that the uk audience also doesnt give a rock monkey about GIb and will have zero say in Gibs future. Like peolple in Gib have nothing to say about what happens in the UK , UK have nothing to say about what happens in GIb. Its a soveriegn overseas territory , not part of the UK. So why butt in? Let me make myself clear I am not English nor want to be…I am British and my head of state is the queen and not the Uk parliament. So stop mixing us with you. we have a common head of state, and comon respect for laws and customs………cant seewhere your hate stems from.
Respectfully, your fellow Gibraltarians here are claiming something very different
You might do if the UK gives it back to Spain – which I hope they do – if only to cause apoplexy amongst those in the UK still mentally living in the 1950s.
Rarely have I read such drivel Richard; I feel very sorry for your students.
I seem remarkably popular with them
He is – honest!
Has it occurred to you to check the constitutional differences between “UK” and “British”?
I am very well aware of it
I have written extensively on the subject with regard to the UK’s tax havens on which I am considered an expert
…but in dismissively talking of all tax havens, you appear to have forgotten that there’s a difference between overseas dependencies and crown dependencies.
No, not at all
If in haste (have you seen how many comments there have been here of late) I have transposed, c’est la vie
I suggest being a pedant never won anyone an argument
One thing you may wish to be aware of is that the UK Government’s view is that it can’t give independence to Gibraltar without the consent of Spain because of the terms of Utrecht.
I think that in the current environment you’re counting angels on pinheads
Spain does not have a legal claim to Gibraltar. It uses the Rock as a political distraction to bury economic woes and corruption. Google: “Gibraltar – Some Relevant International Law” to see Spain’s claim debunked. Time for Spain to drop the illegitimate claims and be a good neighbour.
Wikipedia proves it?
I think you’ll have to do a little better than that
You mean like the Tories do when dealing with Scotland with stuff like ‘English votes for for English laws’ in Parliament?
Mind you it takes one to know one eh?
The last time I looked at a map of our country it was an odd shaped island between the Eurpopean and North American continents with some satellite islands around it. It’s bizarre to think that England extends to an island close to Spain and even Argentina (and elsewhere).
As I said – we love to live in the past. Our colonial past.
All that’s left for us to do now is decide to remember those killed in the Viking invasions and fall out with Norway. I’m serious – looking at our mindset it could happen!
It might help (if you are at all interested) if you did not speak of us & our land as though we were property to be used as bargaining chip or discarded if it becomes an inconvenience. I think in your rush to do the right thing (by your mis-informed logic) you are trampling on our rights. You mention “a world view from a long gone era”. You seem to be stuck in some post war de-colonisation mentality that is no longer relevant. All the colonies that wanted their independence have it back. You do not have to feel guilty or embarrassed by the fact that over 300 years ago something happened which has affected how this particular part of the world is shaped today, that is the history of the entire planet not just Gib. In fact Gibraltar was taken by the English not the British, Scotland was not in the union yet. That’s how far back this shit goes. Are you seriously saying that I have less rights to determine my future & am less important in a British sense because of something that happened several years before Britain even existed?
I am getting bored by the same world view from The Rock
I said we should say goodbye to Gibraltar
I did not say let’s abolish it
Nor did I say it had to go to Spain, or anyone else
I respected your right to self determination in doing so
But what you are saying is that we must do what you want and that you decide our self interest
I am giving you your rights
You are not claiming them
I suggest you cut your foetal chord
Alternatively, grow up and realise no one is abusing you. I am just saying that you’re grown up now so go and get on with it on your own
we will cut our foetal chord when & if we decide, thanks for the suggestion but no thanks. If you’re getting bored with our points of view perhaps you should try to do something else preferably something that does not include your patronising views on what we should or shouldn’t do.
You may not have noticed the parent cuts the foetal chord
I will be doing the same in you unless you have something useful to say
We can’t do that on our own and what you are insinuating by your self serving rubbish is that you condemn a race of people to be absorbed by a political and blackmailing attitude from our wonderful neighbours.
Do you have any inkling whatsoever on the basis of human rights. We had that frontier shut on us for 13 years….Did we complain? Did we cause the UK any disservice when we stood proud for our heritage? I think the biggest question for us is that after our people have undergone the hardships as we have of the UK’s decisions, and went along with every single one of them. After we held up our right to be British during that dark time….We have become a viable financial institution in Europe thanks to the ties we have enjoyed, as the UK has, of our EU membership…until our 96% vote to remain in….was only a mere drop in the sand.
Through all the dark times the UK has faced, we have been the unwelcome company…….You should be ashamed of yourself not only as a Brit…..but as a human to have referred to a race of people…..which we are….in such an imperialistic way!!
I think my tolerance of Gibraltarian nonsense is coming to an end
According to “the treaty”….Gibraltar must, before independence can be granted, be offered back to Spain.
Oopps.