Britain retains responsibility for defence, foreign relations, internal security and financial stability. |Monarch |Queen Elizabeth II |N/A |6 February 1952 |- |Governor |Nick Pyle (Acting) |N/A |18 February 2020 |- |Chief Minister |Fabian Picardo |GSLP/Liberals Alliance |9 December 2011 |} ==Government== The Government of Gibraltar is elected for a term of four years.
This is similar to the offer made to Malta in 1955, under which Malta would be represented in the British House of Commons and be placed under the Home Office, while retaining internal self-government.
It is a sign of the maturity of our relationship now that that is accepted as [Britain]'s position. The effective stalemate has led Peter Caruana to conclude that attending future meetings of the Committee of 24 is a pointless exercise. ==Relations with Spain== In a referendum on 10 September 1967, the people of Gibraltar voted by 12,138 to 44 to reject the transfer of sovereignty to Spain and to remain under British sovereignty.
The preamble to the 2006 Constitution repeated from the 1969 Constitution states that "Her Majesty's Government will never enter into arrangements under which the people of Gibraltar would pass under the sovereignty of another state against their freely and democratically expressed wishes." ==Executive branch== As an overseas territory of Britain, the head of state is Queen Elizabeth II, who is represented by the Governor of Gibraltar.
Under the electoral system of partial bloc voting used since 1969, voters (since 2007) could choose up to ten candidates, who do not necessarily need to be from the same party (but usually are).
Six MEPs were returned, two UKIP, two Conservative, one Labour and one Green. ==Constitutional reform== ===Select Committee proposals=== In 1999, the Government of Gibraltar established a Select Committee on Constitutional Reform, to consider how the 1969 Constitution should be reformed. In March 2006, British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw announced in the British House of Commons that the details of a new constitution had been agreed.
One of Spain's arguments in rejecting comparisons between Gibraltar and these territories is that they are part of Spain, whereas Gibraltar is a British overseas territory and not part of the UK. However, the British Foreign Office rejected the idea in 1976, along with independence, on the grounds that any further constitutional reform or decolonisation would have to take into account the so-called "Spanish dimension".
Its membership runs into several hundred and many others are regularly invited to support or participate in local and global environmental campaigns. ===Gibraltar Local Disability Movement=== The Gibraltar Local Disability Movement (GLDM) was established in 1985 to improve the lives of disabled people in Gibraltar, promote equal opportunities and tackle discrimination.
The movement ceased to be active for several years during the 1990s and early 2000s, but was reactivated in 2005 to address the situation for disabled people in Gibraltar, which did not see great improvement for several years.
www.disability.gi ===Voice of Gibraltar Group=== The Voice of Gibraltar Group was founded in 1996.
It also argues that the principle of territorial integrity, not self-determination applies, drawing parallels with the British handover of Hong Kong to the People's Republic of China in 1997.
In 1997 it organised a march attended by 10,000 people campaigning for Spanish recognition of Gibraltarians' rights within the EU for the support of the new British Labour Government in this matter.
Six MEPs were returned, two UKIP, two Conservative, one Labour and one Green. ==Constitutional reform== ===Select Committee proposals=== In 1999, the Government of Gibraltar established a Select Committee on Constitutional Reform, to consider how the 1969 Constitution should be reformed. In March 2006, British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw announced in the British House of Commons that the details of a new constitution had been agreed.
The movement ceased to be active for several years during the 1990s and early 2000s, but was reactivated in 2005 to address the situation for disabled people in Gibraltar, which did not see great improvement for several years.
In 2001 it drew criticism from the Government of Gibraltar for pressuring the Select Committee of the House of Assembly to accelerate completion of its work and for introducing what the Government claimed were partisan politics into the matter of Gibraltar remaining British.
In a referendum held in 2002, a proposal for shared sovereignty was overwhelmingly rejected by the Gibraltar electorate with 98.97% voting against.
In a referendum organised by the Government of Gibraltar on 7 November 2002, voters overwhelmingly rejected the principle that Spain and the United Kingdom should share sovereignty over Gibraltar, by 17,900 votes to 187 on a turnout of almost 88%. Unlike most other British territories, Gibraltar has not been offered independence by the UK.
The UK Government passed the European Parliament (Representation) Act in 2003 in order to comply with the ruling.
Gibraltar was included in the South West England Region for the purposes of European Parliament elections, and first voted in the 2004 election. The 2004 European Election was the first UK election in which Gibraltar participated.
The Conservatives also campaigned strongly, with the support of the Gibraltar branch of the party and a visit from the party leader Michael Howard. In 2009, the Conservatives again topped the poll with 54% but in contrast to 2004 the turnout at 35% was much lower, being comparable to other EU states. In 2014 the Liberal Democrat Party topped the poll, but the votes cast in South West England resulted in the none of the Liberal Democrat candidates becoming MEPs.
The movement ceased to be active for several years during the 1990s and early 2000s, but was reactivated in 2005 to address the situation for disabled people in Gibraltar, which did not see great improvement for several years.
The British Government, however, is responsible for defence and external affairs but Gibraltar has full internal self-government under its 2006 Constitution. The government of Spain continues with an irredentist territorial claim to Gibraltar, which was ceded in perpetuity to the British Crown in 1713 by Article X of the Treaty of Utrecht.
The preamble to the 2006 Constitution repeated from the 1969 Constitution states that "Her Majesty's Government will never enter into arrangements under which the people of Gibraltar would pass under the sovereignty of another state against their freely and democratically expressed wishes." ==Executive branch== As an overseas territory of Britain, the head of state is Queen Elizabeth II, who is represented by the Governor of Gibraltar.
It achieved under 1% of the vote and has subsequently ceased any activity. In June 2006 the Progressive Democratic Party (PDP) was formed and announced it would be presenting a full slate of candidates and had entered the political arena as "a fresh, positive and modern alternative," to both the ruling Gibraltar Social Democrats and the Opposition GSLP/Liberals.
Six MEPs were returned, two UKIP, two Conservative, one Labour and one Green. ==Constitutional reform== ===Select Committee proposals=== In 1999, the Government of Gibraltar established a Select Committee on Constitutional Reform, to consider how the 1969 Constitution should be reformed. In March 2006, British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw announced in the British House of Commons that the details of a new constitution had been agreed.
There were some differences between the draft constitution and the one to which the UK agreed, namely that the Governor's title would remain unchanged, and that the Police Authority would remain independent of the Government of Gibraltar. ===2006 Constitution=== In December 2006 Gibraltar was granted a new constitution, providing a modern constitutional relationship between Gibraltar and the United Kingdom, not based on colonialism.
The government of Gibraltar has also invited the Committee to visit the territory, but so far, despite no objection from the United Kingdom, they have not done so. The 2006 constitution further increases the level of self-government in the territory, and the colonial status of Gibraltar is now considered to be over.
Although the 2006 Equal Opportunities Act protects disabled people in Gibraltar from discrimination, Gibraltar remains behind the UK and other countries on issues such as disability allowances and wheelchair access to both private and government buildings.
Under the electoral system of partial bloc voting used since 1969, voters (since 2007) could choose up to ten candidates, who do not necessarily need to be from the same party (but usually are).
NGD claimed that the two main parties were "Out of touch with people's expectations and make up for their lack of ideas through Orwellian style propaganda." At the 2007 election one candidate, Charles Gomez, stood for election for the party.
The constitution took effect in 2007 and 29 January declared a public holiday in celebration. ===Integration with the UK=== Various groups in Gibraltar have campaigned in favour of a far closer relationship with Britain, in the form of devolved integration or incorporation into the Britain itself.
The Conservatives also campaigned strongly, with the support of the Gibraltar branch of the party and a visit from the party leader Michael Howard. In 2009, the Conservatives again topped the poll with 54% but in contrast to 2004 the turnout at 35% was much lower, being comparable to other EU states. In 2014 the Liberal Democrat Party topped the poll, but the votes cast in South West England resulted in the none of the Liberal Democrat candidates becoming MEPs.
Britain retains responsibility for defence, foreign relations, internal security and financial stability. |Monarch |Queen Elizabeth II |N/A |6 February 1952 |- |Governor |Nick Pyle (Acting) |N/A |18 February 2020 |- |Chief Minister |Fabian Picardo |GSLP/Liberals Alliance |9 December 2011 |} ==Government== The Government of Gibraltar is elected for a term of four years.
Fabian Picardo of the Gibraltar Socialist Labour Party (GSLP) who has been in office since 9 December 2011, in alliance with the Liberal Party of Gibraltar (Liberals), following the 2011 General Election.
The Conservatives also campaigned strongly, with the support of the Gibraltar branch of the party and a visit from the party leader Michael Howard. In 2009, the Conservatives again topped the poll with 54% but in contrast to 2004 the turnout at 35% was much lower, being comparable to other EU states. In 2014 the Liberal Democrat Party topped the poll, but the votes cast in South West England resulted in the none of the Liberal Democrat candidates becoming MEPs.
The last election was held on 26 November 2015. ==Governor== Queen Elizabeth II is represented by the Governor and Commander-in-Chief, presently Lieutenant General Edward Davis (sworn in 19 January 2016).
The last election was held on 26 November 2015. ==Governor== Queen Elizabeth II is represented by the Governor and Commander-in-Chief, presently Lieutenant General Edward Davis (sworn in 19 January 2016).
Britain retains responsibility for defence, foreign relations, internal security and financial stability. |Monarch |Queen Elizabeth II |N/A |6 February 1952 |- |Governor |Nick Pyle (Acting) |N/A |18 February 2020 |- |Chief Minister |Fabian Picardo |GSLP/Liberals Alliance |9 December 2011 |} ==Government== The Government of Gibraltar is elected for a term of four years.
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