HC Deb 16 May 1973 vol 856 cc341-2W
Mr. Gregor Mackenzie

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on his recent talks with representatives of the Spanish Government on the future of Gibraltar.

Sir Alec Douglas-Home

My talks with the Spanish Foreign Minister on 8th and 9th May marked a further stage in the series of conversations we have been holding. Sr. Lopez Bravo also called on my right hon. Friends the Prime Minister, the Secretary of State for Defence and the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster.

On Gibraltar, the Spanish Foreign Minister and I recognised that we had been unable to make progress as we would have wished towards a resolution of our differences. We have agreed to continue to examine the problem patiently and constructively. To this end I shall in due course be getting in touch with Sr. Lopez Bravo again.