Resigned British minister reveals that a negotiator on his team put sovereignty over Gibraltar at risk

MADRID, 21 Abr. (EUROPA PRESS) -

Former British Minister Dominic Raab, who resigned this Friday as 'number two' in the Government and held the Foreign Ministry for two years, has acknowledged the internal tensions during the negotiations with Spain in relation to Gibraltar and has ensured that one of the main United Kingdom negotiators came to "endanger the sovereignty" of the Rock.

Raab, pointed out in an investigation for workplace harassment and until this Friday Minister of Justice, has defended himself against those who accuse him of exceeding his own colleagues, first in a letter sent to the head of the Government, Rishi Sunak, and then in a published forum in the 'Daily Telegraph' in which he argues the reason for some of his performances.

In this sense, he explained in the letter that a minister must be able to be critical of his subordinates and exercise "direct supervision" when there are relevant situations, as happened in his case "in the Brexit negotiations on Gibraltar, when a senior diplomat broke the mandate agreed by the Cabinet", without going into more detail.

Raab has confirmed in his article in the 'Telegraph' that he made "personnel changes" at a key moment in the negotiations with Spain in relation to Gibraltar. "I discovered that a key negotiator had exceeded the democratic mandate set by the Government, putting the sovereignty of the United Kingdom at risk," said the former head of British diplomacy.

The change, he added, did not imply long-term damage and, in fact, Raab considers that it was "essential" for the so-called New Year's Eve Agreement to be signed, which on December 31, 2020 established a first regulatory framework around Gibraltar just a few hours before the deadline set by Brexit expired. The possibility that there would be no agreement was "dangerously close", the former minister has admitted.

Raab regretted that, despite these explanations, the person in charge of investigating the accusations of harassment made against him pointed out that he had abused his position in relation to this negotiator. "He did not conclude that it was intentional, a legal requirement within the definition of harassment. Nobody questioned my conduct at that time and there were no complaints until two and a half years later," he clarified.

The former Foreign Minister has defended that, regardless of criticism or pressure, he never crossed any limits: "I never insulted or yelled at officials, much less threatened, attacked or threw anything at them." In fact, he fears that setting the bar "too low" in terms of which charges can succeed could set a "dangerous precedent" and lead to unsubstantiated lawsuits against senior officials.