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EU Court of Justice confirms Spain has a listed nature site in Gibraltar waters
British Government has lost a crucial appeal before the European Court of Justice [ECJ] relating to Gibraltar’s territorial waters. Britain was seeking to overturn an earlier judgement dismissing its legal challenge to the European Commission’s approval of a Spanish EU nature site in British waters. Read full article
Comments
Disclaimer & comment rulesHow [not] surprised are we,
Nov 30th, 2012 - 07:41 pm - Link - Report abuse 0Still this is what may happen when one is considered to weak to act,
Perhaps when we finally withdraw from the EU, we might be in a position to tell the EU and Spain where to go.?
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whats the fuss about anyway? it doesnt affect sovereignty in any way.... so I dont see the big deal?
Nov 30th, 2012 - 07:49 pm - Link - Report abuse 0a listed nature site well fook me, that will seal it, don't worry about what the people want there's a nature site there, bit like TMBOA and her prevailing winds and fauna, what a crock of shit!!!!!
Nov 30th, 2012 - 08:11 pm - Link - Report abuse 0Gibraltar should make a nature site in spains waters, simplez... EU cant be seen to have double standards.
Nov 30th, 2012 - 10:38 pm - Link - Report abuse 0was going to barcelona next year with my family, not no more, the idea of handing my money to spain is quite sickening.
unless of course catalonia breaks away from spain.
go to Greece instead
Nov 30th, 2012 - 11:47 pm - Link - Report abuse 0@5 good idea, the family would love it, itll be a riot. :)
Dec 01st, 2012 - 02:43 am - Link - Report abuse 0Another setback for UK foreign Office policy but they are not going to fail again especially with Argentina...
Dec 01st, 2012 - 10:04 am - Link - Report abuse 0Foreign Office working as usual...
http://s7.postimage.org/e5h90maej/foreign_office_uk.jpg
We need more battleships cruising the waters of Gibraltar not Spanish “fishing” vessels
Dec 01st, 2012 - 11:49 am - Link - Report abuse 0Leaving aside the fact that we don't have any battleships, what good would any ship do? In such restricted waters, a ship would take too long to get anywhere. Apache gunships are what are needed. A full squadron!
Dec 01st, 2012 - 12:36 pm - Link - Report abuse 0It is worth noting that the Commission Decisions do NOT list British Gibraltar territorial waters (BGTW) as being under the control of Spain. Rather, Spain has proposed an area, which includes BGTW, to the Commission as a 'Site of Community Importance' (SCI) and the Decisions list this site as an SCI.
Dec 01st, 2012 - 05:21 pm - Link - Report abuse 0[Why, when the UK listed its SCI Southern Waters of Gibraltar in 2006, did the Commission insist on consultation in advance with Spain, but did not insist on this when Spain made its overlapping listing in 2008/12?]
'Sites of Community Importance (SCIs) are sites that have been adopted by the European Commission but not formally designated by the government of each country.'
The UK and Gibraltar may chose to recognise their own designated Reserve in the area, but may chose to not recognise the Spanish-proposed SCI that covers much the same area.
Spain should declare all of Gibs waters a nature site, that way Gib could stop the bastards fishing there, legally and it would not effect Gib, because they would not recognise it!!!!
Dec 01st, 2012 - 08:45 pm - Link - Report abuse 0pirate love...stay home!! and save those shillings for a rainy day.......
Dec 01st, 2012 - 11:29 pm - Link - Report abuse 0Seems Spain's dastardly plot to protect the local environment is working =) Btw how does Gibralter get THREE MEPs, unless the article means the MEPs belonging to a wider area including Gibralter? Which would be weird if its a territorially distinct BOT...
Dec 02nd, 2012 - 02:22 am - Link - Report abuse 0Yep and to deprive itself of much needed tourism revenue!
Dec 02nd, 2012 - 08:57 am - Link - Report abuse 0Gibraltar (spelt correctly) gets three Conservative MEP's because we are worth it. On the other hand Spain got a Spanish judge to decide on whether the case was admissible and she decided it was not. What a surprise !
Dec 02nd, 2012 - 11:13 am - Link - Report abuse 0The Gib. authorities are eagle-eye placed to record and report to the EU every fishing transgression in the Eastern Strait zone protected for conservation.
Dec 02nd, 2012 - 11:16 am - Link - Report abuse 0Only if the fishing boats painted out their IMO code or attempted night fishing would there be a slight problem. Even at night, sonar fingerprints are constantly recorded for this extremely important choke-point (I imagine only the Straits of Hormuz are better electronically observed!).
I seriously don't understand why you people expect logic from Spanish speakers. Historically they've never been logical and now they're just a morally and economically vacuous backwater trying to steal other people's possessions.
Dec 02nd, 2012 - 12:14 pm - Link - Report abuse 0I guess in tough times, one typically resorts to form (argentina becomes larcenous, spain becomes larcenous, bolivia becomes larcenous, venezuela becomes larcenous...repeat ad nauseum).
@10 It is also worth noting, from the same Chronicle report that “The Spanish marine and fisheries research vessel Emma Bardan entered British waters yesterday afternoon to carry out survey work for Spain’s Ministry for Agriculture, Food and the Environment.
Dec 02nd, 2012 - 05:08 pm - Link - Report abuse 0The Governor, Sir Adrian Johns, said the vessel had violated British sovereignty and was ordered out by the Gibraltar Squadron.”
So, listen up, Spain. Sooner or later you are going to force the Royal Navy to open fire.
Moreover, this is yet another reason for the UK to leave the EU. Appeal and get a Spanish judge? What sort of justice is that? Well, it's EU justice. The sort that views all the waters around Europe as “EU waters”. The sort that permits Spanish fishing boats to over-fish British fishing grounds. Let's do the obvious thing. Re-arm!
@18 Logic suggests that given all spaniards and spanish speakers are pathological opportunists that have no moral code, we can assume that spanish judges are also devoid of any kind of ethical structure whatsoever.
Dec 02nd, 2012 - 07:35 pm - Link - Report abuse 0For this reason alone I'm guessing you could tell the EU court to go swivel if they served up any member of the spanish judiciary to hear out something about Gibraltar.
“Law should govern” Aristoteles...
Dec 03rd, 2012 - 03:46 am - Link - Report abuse 0Before the Brit copy past that turned into...
“The rule of law” only if favour us of course...
@19
Dec 03rd, 2012 - 10:45 am - Link - Report abuse 0Same as the Assange fiasco, A Spanish lawyer, ex judge, standing in a British street outside a South American Embassy, telling the British people how to administer their own Criminal Judicial System. Farcical, WTF, this was not why my grand parents and parents voted on the question of whether we should enter the then EEC, which correct me if I am wrong, was suppose to be a European Trade Union! It's gone too far, far too far and it is now time say so, loud and clear!
THIS IS DEMOCRACY.....If the EU has given Spain the right to control the waters..end of story..stop whinging so much....you sound like spoilt children...The UK has lost and that is it..accept democracy in action.....
Dec 03rd, 2012 - 01:21 pm - Link - Report abuse 0“Control of waters!” You need to read the article again. It's abut the establishement of a nature site, nothing to do with control of territorial waters.
Dec 03rd, 2012 - 01:27 pm - Link - Report abuse 0well the same thing...what´s the fuzz all about!!! you all sound like a bunch of anarchists!!!
Dec 03rd, 2012 - 01:31 pm - Link - Report abuse 0@13 BK
Dec 03rd, 2012 - 04:33 pm - Link - Report abuse 0As of the 1999 ECHR case, it was decided that Gibraltar should be entitled to vote in EC elections.
As they are British (by their choice) then they are included in the nearest British constituency (South West England).
Needless to say, this was protested by Spain in the european courts, and lost.
THIS IS DEMOCRACY.....If the islanders has given Britain the right to control the waters..end of story..stop whinging so much....you sound like spoilt children...The argentina has lost and that is it..Accept democracy in action.....
Dec 03rd, 2012 - 07:11 pm - Link - Report abuse 0Boot other foot .com.
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