§ Mr. Roy Hughesasked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he has made to the Government of Spain concerning the statement by the Spanish Foreign Minister on 18th October, 1971, that the Gibraltarians can have no say in the question of sovereignty over the Rock, that these matters can only be discussed by the Governments of Spain and Great Britain, and that agreement along these lines has already been reached between the two Governments; and what the position is of the British Government.
§ Sir Alec Douglas-HomeNone. The Spanish Government are already aware that the position of Her Majesty's Government with regard to the status of246W Gibraltar and its people remains as set out in the preamble to the Gibraltar Constitution Order in Council. My meeting with Señor Lopez Bravo in New York on 27th September did not result in any agreement on the substance of the Gibraltar question, but we did agree that we should think together about it and that I would visit Madrid in the New Year to carry this process forward.
§ Mr. Roy Hughesasked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will confirm that in future discussions with the Spanish Government over the future of Gibraltar any change in the administration and sovereignty of the Rock will only be made with the full support of the Gibraltarians.
§ Sir Alec Douglas-HomeHer Majesty's Government's position remains as set out in the preamble to the Gibraltar Constitution Order in Council of May, 1969, namely, that
Gibraltar will remain part of Her Majesty's dominions unless and until an Act of Parliament otherwise provides and furthermore that Her Majesty's Government will 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.