Spain has insisted the UK accepts a generous post-Brexit deal which would see Spanish troops stationed in Gibraltar otherwise a hard border could be introduced.
The proposed deal would see the Gibraltar join the Schengen area. However, Madrid has insisted that Spanish security forces would need to be present at the Rocks ports and airports to monitor arrivals.
It comes after the new Labour government announced last week that it planned to hand over the disputed Chagos Islands back to Mauritius after years of negotiation.
Speaking in Andalusia, a southern region of Spain that borders Gibraltar, Spains foreign minister Jose Manuel Albares told reporters that the European Unions new digital border system will affect thousands on both sides of the border.
He said that the new controls would mean non-EU citizens - such as Brits living in Gibraltar - would only be allowed to spend 90 days in Spain every 180 days unless a new agreement was reached.
The proposed deal would see the Gibraltar join the Schengen area. However, Madrid has insisted that Spanish security forces would need to be present at the Rocks ports and airports to monitor arrivals
Spains foreign minister Jose Manuel Albares (pictured) told reporters that the European Union s new digital border system will affect thousands on both sides of the border
Since December 2020, a post-Brexit deal between the UK, Spain and the EU has allowed citizens of Gibraltar to remain part of the border-free Schengen area among other EU agreements.
As a result of this deal, Spanish border guards have allowed Gibraltar residents to enter and leave Spain without stamping their passports or using their 90-day travel limit.
In return, over 15,000 workers from Spain - who make up more than half of the working population on the Rock - have been allowed to enter Gibraltar with ease.
Last year, Madrid and London came close to reaching a settlement but could not agree on the joint use of policing at Gibraltar Airport which saw 473,803 passengers pass through the airport last year.
Many of these passengers then travel on to nearby Spanish resorts such as Malaga and Marbella which are popular with British tourists.
Mr Albares said: Its time for the United Kingdom to say yes to a balanced and generous agreement that we have put on the table a long time ago.
It is the UK that now has to choose whether it wants a system of restriction of movement for the people of Gibraltar or the generous and balanced deal on offer.
Spanish workers crossing the border into Gibraltar. Over 15,000 workers from Spain - who make up more than half of the working population on the Rock - have been allowed to enter Gibraltar with ease since a December 2020 post-Brexit deal
Mr Albares said: Its time for the United Kingdom to say yes to a balanced and generous agreement that we have put on the table a long time ago
Sir Keir told MPs at PMQs yesterday that his Government was committed to both the Falklands and Gibraltar after an agreement to hand back the Chagos islands was reached
However, Gibraltars government has rebuked any plans to have Spanish police inside the territory.
Fabian Picardo, the Chief Minister of Gibraltar, has stated he would not accept Spanish boots on the ground, the Daily Telegraph reported.
His government has previously threatened to retaliate with its own border controls if no deal can be reached between both parties. This could potentially lead to delays at the border.
The disputed territory has been a thorn in the side of British-Spanish relations for centuries ever since Gibraltar was seceded to the UK in 1713.
Spain continues to assert its own territorial claim to the land despite residents overwhelmingly voting to remain under British rule by a whopping 98 per cent in a 2002 referendum.
The increasing pressure from Madrid comes after Labour agreed to hand over what the Chagos Islands, also known as the British Indian Ocean Territory, to Mauritius.
Sir Keir has defended the deal as being necessary to secure the rights of the UK and US to continue to operate a military base on Diego Garcia, the largest of the islands.
But the Tories slammed the PM for a dangerous capitulation handing the islands to an ally of China and questioned his stance on other British overseas territories.
The increasing pressure from Madrid comes after Labour agreed to hand over what the Chagos Islands, also known as the British Indian Ocean Territory, to Mauritius
At PMQs yesterday, Sir Keir Starmer rebuked fears raised over the future of the Falkland Islands.
The islands are a disputed territory between Argentina and the UK with both countries going to war over the south Atlantic archipelago in 1982.
The PM told the House of Commons the Falklands are British and will remain British as he recalled how his uncle nearly died during the 1982 war over the archipelago.
Its personal to me, Sir Keir told MPs as he reiterated his Governments commitment to both the Falklands and Gibraltar.