Spain agrees to let European Commission monitor Gibraltar border checks
SPAIN'S border checks with Gibraltar will be monitored by the European Commission to see if they are breaching international law.
The Commission said Spanish prime minister Mariano Rajoy has agreed to allow a team in "as soon as possible" in a telephone call with President Jose Manuel Barroso to discuss the dispute.
The announcement comes just hours after Royal Navy warship HMS Westminster arrived at Gibraltar for a scheduled visit ahead of exercises in the Mediterranean.
The ship is visiting ahead of the Cougar 13 wargames, which also include the helicopter carrier HMS Illustrious and the flagship HMS Bulwark.
The long-planned arrival of the Type 23 frigate comes the day after more than 40 commercial Spanish boats staged a protest over a controversial reef that has sparked a diplomatic row between Britain and Spain and retaliatory delays at the border with the British Overseas Territory.
Up to 38 fishing boats repeatedly threatened to sail illegally through a cordon set up by the Navy and Royal Gibraltar Police in disputed waters.
Castle Yates, Chief Inspector of the Gibraltar Police, said: “We had our own cordon along with the Royal Navy and other assets and we corralled them.
“They tried to breach the cordon several times but were not successful.”
It has claimed these are unrelated to the diplomatic spat but David Cameron said the checks were “politically motivated and disproportionate”.
Downing Street has refused to rule out disrupting Spain's lucrative tourist industry as the row continues to escalate.
Pressed repeatedly on the potential for such action, a Number 10 spokesman told reporters: "Our preference here is to resolve this via political means and through dialogue with the Spanish government.
"We clearly want to reach a quick resolution which is acceptable and brings an end to these totally disproportionate border checks."
Asked if David Cameron was confident of securing a swift resolution, he said: "We will do what we need to do to bring this to a satisfactory conclusion."
The Number 10 spokesman said the Prime Minister wanted the EU to send monitors to the border "urgently".
"We are still actively pursuing legal action. If we do pursue it, the first step would be for the European Commission to investigate the issue. That is why the Prime Minister spoke to President (Jose Manuel) Barroso.
Julie Girling, the Conservative MEP for the South West and Gibraltar, is in the territory for talks with local politicians.
"I think what the people of Gibraltar have really appreciated with the arrival of Westminster today, and the two support ships, is that it is flying the flag, it is saying 'we British people support the Gibraltarians, we are not abandoning you', and that has been very, very welcome," she said.
"If this situation continues, if the pressure on Gibraltar continues, then of course I think the people of Gibraltar would like to see a bit more of that."
Locals waving Union flags gathered on the quayside to watch the grey warship make its way through the bay into the harbour, where they cheered it in.
It was followed in later in the morning by the two RFA support vessels.
Retired Royal Gibraltar Police officer Michael Sanchez, 53, said he would like to see British warships off Gibraltar more often.
"It is getting to be out of control, it is not a spat any more," he said.
"It's a normal deployment but we need bigger assets to show them.
"If you park something out there grey (a warship) for a couple of days you can see them (the Spanish) calm down.
"I know that, I have seen it, I have worked for 33 years in the police force, I have seen it before."
He added: "These guys need to be taught a lesson.
"It is no good having [William] Hague, [David] Cameron sending protests galore. You have got to stick your nose in there, your face into their face. If not they just get away with it."
Andrea Jones, 46, works for an online gaming company and has lived in Gibraltar for 12 years.
She said the frigate's arrival was "a two-fingered salute towards Spain".
"I think the Gibraltarians are tending to be a bit more passionate at this moment in time," she said.
"We are constantly used to Spain being disgruntled about one thing or another. This time I think they have taken it that little step further and put more border queues on, they have been more stringent.
"They have been quite nasty, to be quite honest."
Since the Prime Minister’s plea, two cars with Gibraltar plates on the Spanish side have been torched.
One, a Land Rover worth £20,000, was parked in the town of La Linea after queues made it quicker to walk across the border. When the owners returned later it was gone. Richard Ullger, chief inspector of the Royal Gibraltar Police, said: “There have been incidents involving damage but this represents an escalation and it is most concerning.
“It does seem the cars were deliberately targeted. It is very worrying. The last thing we want is violence against people but very real tension exists.”
Lorries have struggled to enter. One shopper said: “We could see our fresh food and veg having to come from Morocco.” Ukip MEP William Dartmouth has suggested a member of the Royal Family should visit Gibraltar to mark 300 years of sovereignty.