Gibraltar marks National Day amid debut of post-Brexit border treaty

Gibraltar is set to observe its National Day on Thursday, turning the city’s avenues red and white to mark the 59th anniversary of the 1967 vote in which 99.64% chose to remain under British rule. The festivities arrive just weeks after a historic treaty, signed on 14 July and applied from 15 July, ended routine checks at the Gibraltar-Spain land border and integrated the territory into the frictionless Schengen area. While Chief Minister Fabian Picardo hailed the agreement as delivering border fluidity and legal certainty without compromising British sovereignty, opposition leader Keith Azopardi of the Gibraltar Social Democrats called the arrangement “far from perfect” and warned it lacks an absolute guarantee for the Rock’s future.

Picardo linked the treaty to the principle of self-determination expressed in past referendums and noted it reflects Gibraltar’s voice in high-level diplomacy. The National Day will also be Picardo’s last as chief minister after fifteen years, and a cross-party UK parliamentary delegation, led by Amanda Martin and joined by Martin Vickers, Al Pinkerton and Reform UK MP Andrew Rosindell, will attend to assess the treaty’s on-ground impact.