BORIS JOHNSON: A great supporter of Gibraltar

And the two leaders returned to the Rock satisfied that the solid base of support for Gibraltar's position now and in the future would be upheld.

Of course, nobody doubted Mr Johnson's backing for Gibraltar, as he has long been a fervent supporter of Gibraltar and its people - even in the days when he was Foreign Secretary, when he would surge forward in defence of Gibraltar putting aside the diplomatic language that was probably expected of him.

Before then, and now, Gibraltar has been close to his heart. There he was, in 2013, wading into an increasingly bitter row over Gibraltar, demanding that the then prime minister, also a Conservative, should ‘prise Spanish hands off the throat’ of Gibraltar.

At the time he was Mayor of London. And he was incensed because the Spanish authorities had decided 'for no good' reason, to revive the frontier harassment more in keeping with the Franco era.

And when expected he would not mince his words to show unflinching support - such as when he made it pellucidly clear that "Gibraltar is not for sale."

BREXIT

And while Brexit has produced its ups and downs, he offered solace to the people when he said that Gibraltar would not be “traded” or “bargained away” during Brexit talks.

It followed the surprise decision by EU leaders to mention, in their framework for Brexit talks, a Spanish veto over any future trade deal involving Gibraltar.

He added: “The policy of the Government remains fixed and firm. The sovereignty of Gibraltar cannot be changed without the express consent of the UK and the people of Gibraltar.”

His view is this: “The status of Gibraltar has been unchanged since 1713. It made no difference when the UK joined the Common Market in 1973 and when Spain was not yet a member. It should make no difference today."

When European Council president Donald Tusk said this: "After the United Kingdom leaves the Union, no agreement between the EU and the United Kingdom may apply to the territory of Gibraltar without the agreement between the Kingdom of Spain and the United Kingdom,” he picked up the telephone and rang chief minister Fabian Picardo about it. "I wanted to reiterate that the UK remains implacable and rock-like in our support for Gibraltar. As the Prime Minister herself said earlier this week, we are clear that Gibraltar is covered by our exit negotiations, and we have committed to involving Gibraltar fully in the work that we are doing."

He also said: “The people of Gibraltar have repeatedly and overwhelmingly expressed their wish to remain under British sovereignty and we will respect their wishes.”

And Johnson is also on record as having pledged that the UK government “will not enter into any process of sovereignty negotiations with which Gibraltar is not content.

“We will continue to take whatever action is necessary to safeguard Gibraltar, its people and its economy including maintaining a well-functioning Gibraltar-Spain Border,” he said, in a Foreign Office statement.

And in case there was any Doubting Thomas about, he made the position of the Government 'very, very clear.' That is that "the sovereignty of Gibraltar is unchanged and it’s not going to change, and cannot conceivably change without the express support and consent of the people of Gibraltar and the United Kingdom.”

And now, his rock-solid position has the added strength of Prime Minister.

24-07-19 PANORAMAdailyGIBRALTAR