Straw forced to deny allegations of secret Gibraltar deal with Spain

Jack Straw was forced to issue a furious denial that Britain and Spain had agreed a deal to share sovereignty over Gibraltar.

The Conservatives accused the Government of orchestrating a "stitch-up and sell-out" over the disputed territory, despite the Foreign Secretary's insistence that the people of Gibraltar would have the final say over any change from British rule. Labour MPs also had reservations over the outcome of talks with the Spanish.

Mr Straw was called to answer an emergency question in the Commons yesterday after reports that the Foreign Office was close to sealing a power-sharing agreement with Madrid. Mr Straw said: "No agreement has been reached with the Spanish government and the Spanish government has made no such claims."

But Michael Ancram, the shadow Foreign Secretary, said the negotiations over the territory "smell to high heaven.

"It is totally unacceptable to seek to pre-empt proper discussion of this vital issue of sovereignty in due course," he said. "I'm ... less than convinced that there is not a deal being done behind closed doors to share sovereignty.

"The whole process within which you are engaged is beginning to smell to high heaven and the smell is of stitch-up and of sell-out."

Mr Straw replied: "Any provisional agreement reached between us and the government of Spain will be subject, entire freely, in a secret ballot, to the wish of the people of Gibraltar, without duress and, moreover, would also be subject to a decision by this House and 'the other place' [the Lords]."

David Winnick, Labour MP for Walsall North, said Spain had pursued a policy of outright hostility to Gibraltar for years. He said: "Understandably, the people of Gibraltar, instead of seeing Spain as some kind of friend, recognise that it has adopted such a policy."