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SPAIN AND THE UK

UK ambassador to Spain bids farewell to Brits – who is his successor?

UK ambassador to Spain Hugh Elliott on Wednesday had his last day in the job and bid his farewell to Brits in Spain after an eventful five years in the post. Who is set to replace him and what will they have waiting for them in their in tray?

Published: 5 September 2024 09:39 CEST
UK ambassador to Spain bids farewell to Brits - who is his successor?
Hugh Elliott will be replaced by Sir Alex Ellis as UK Ambassador to Spain. Photos: Gov.uk

The UK ambassador to Spain, Hugh Elliott, has had his last day in the post.

Bidding farewell to Brits in Spain and Spaniards alike, Elliott posted his final video messages (one in English and one in Spanish) stating that “Spain is an exceptional country and the relationship between our countries, and between our peoples, is exceptional.”

He added that it’s no surprise that there are more flights between Spain and the UK than between any other two countries in the world.

The 59-year-old diplomat also described Spain as a “very welcoming” nation and that he’d had “five wonderful but turbulent years” here.

It’s true that Elliott was British ambassador through some unpredictable times. He oversaw the embassy during both the Covid-19 pandemic and Brexit negotiations, including the seemingly never-ending driving licence debacle which kept UK licence holders off the roads in Spain for 10 months. 

READ ALSO: UK driving licence deal: How to exchange yours for a Spanish one

Yet Elliott seemed to make friends and build relations wherever he went around Spain. He speaks fluent Spanish as he is married to a Spanish woman (María Antonia Martín), used his time here to travel extensively around the country (he visited every province besides Almería and Badajoz) and posted online regularly on both serious and light-hearted matters.

In his Spanish farewell video he even made the tongue-in-cheek remark that his “greatest achievement is to have managed to leave Spain with considerably fewer kilos than I had when I arrived” despite Spain’s “marvellous gastronomy” and the doubtless hundreds of events and receptions he attended as part of his official duties over the years.

The British diplomat may have shed some of that extra weight as his last challenge during his tenure was to run 100 kilometres to raise money for multiple sclerosis. 

Elliott took to Twitter/X to wish his successor luck in their new role:

“Thank you very much for your kindness and welcome during these 5 years as British ambassador in Spain. And all the best to my successor @AlexWEllis who you can follow on social media from now on. See you soon!”

Who is Alex Ellis?

Elliott will be replaced by Sir Alexander Wykeham Ellis KCMG, who previously worked as the British ambassador in Brazil and Portugal and was also British High Commissioner in India. 

Ellis was educated at Winchester College, one of England’s most prestigious private schools where former Prime Minister Rishi Sunak was educated, and then Magdalene College, Cambridge.

Between 2003 and 2005, Ellis was Madrid based in his British Embassy role as Counsellor for EU and Global Issues.

Following the Brexit referendum he also worked for two years in the department responsible for the UK’s withdrawal from the EU, something that may have factored into his appointment as Gibraltar is still yet to finalise a Brexit deal some eight years after the vote.

READ MORE: Hard border? What we know so far about new Gibraltar-Spain checks

Another issue that Ellis may work to improve relations on is a potential youth mobility scheme between Spain and the UK floated as an idea by Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez to his British counterpart Keir Starmer at a political summit over the summer.

READ ALSO: Can Spain and the UK legally create a ‘free movement scheme’ for young people?

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POLITICS

Gibraltar demands Spain return stolen concrete block in new diplomatic spat

The concrete block was stolen from British waters in 2013 by a Spanish far-right politician but threatens to worsen ties between Madrid and London over a decade later at a critical time for the overseas territory’s post-Brexit status.

Published: 12 September 2024 09:45 CEST
Gibraltar demands Spain return stolen concrete block in new diplomatic spat

A block of concrete stolen from an artificial reef in British waters has sparked a political spat between Gibraltar and Spanish far-right party Vox, with the British overseas territory’s Chief Minister making a formal complaint to Madrid demanding that it be returned.

This comes as seemingly never ending negotiations between Britain and Spain to finalise Gibraltar’s post-Brexit status drag on.

The block was stolen from waters close to Gibraltar in 2013 by Vox spokesman Javier Ortega Smith, an outspoken Spanish nationalist and former special forces soldier. 

Spanish media reports suggest the justification at the time was that the artificial reef was impeding the work of Spanish fishermen and that Ortega Smith was aided by Spanish divers. The creation of the reef, which included tens of concrete blocks, aggravated relations between Britain and Spain at the time.

READ ALSO: ‘Starting now’: New UK govt wastes no time in Gibraltar post-Brexit talks with Spain

Once stolen, the block was taken back to Madrid and is displayed at Vox’s national party headquarters. Gibraltarian authorities then issued an arrest warrant for Ortega Smith.

Now over a decade later Chief Minister Fabian Picardo has filed a claim in Madrid for the block’s return. Speaking on Gibraltar’s national day, Picardo stated “That block is currently at the entrance of the Vox headquarters. Well, I have news for Vox and for you, my friends. We are going to get it back and it is coming home.”

Speaking to The Times, Picardo explained: “It’s our property. We want it back. It was paid for by Gibraltar’s taxpayers for a conservation purpose which was praised by King Charles himself. We expect the Spanish courts will order its return to the government of Gibraltar.”

In response Ortega Smith mocked Picardo online and employed common anti-Gibraltarian tropes: “Let’s see, pirate Fabian Picardo. If you dare, come and get it and carry it away on your back. Gibraltar is Spanish! Pirates out of the Rock!”

For the Spanish far-right, Gibraltar has long been a blood and soil type rallying call for nationalist groups. In July, when the Spanish football team won Euro 2024, another diplomatic spat erupted when Spanish players sang Gibraltar es Español (Gibraltar is Spanish) during the celebrations. 

READ ALSO: ‘Gibraltar is Spanish!’: How Spain celebrated Euro 2024 heroes

Although a dispute over a concrete block stolen over a decade ago may seem trivial, it comes at a critical point in diplomatic relations between London and Madrid. Since Brexit came into effect at the end of 2020, Gibraltar has essentially existed in legal limbo with no formal treaty.

Border controls have been fudged ever since, leaving locals and Spaniards across the border faced with inconsistent rules and forcing travellers to find creative ways to bypass rules and get over ‘La Línea’. 

READ ALSO: Hard border? What we know so far about new Gibraltar-Spain checks

Schengen Zone rules mean that the two major outstanding points in treaty negotiations are the presence of Spanish border guards on British soil, something Gibraltar rejects outright, and the question of who would run Gibraltar’s airport, which is located on the isthmus between Spain and the British territory, an area Madrid claims was never included in the 1713 Treaty of Utrecht that ceded Gibraltar to the British.

Optimistic noises were made when former Prime Minister David Cameron briefly became Foreign Secretary earlier this year but no treaty was ever finalised. His successor David Lammy will likely try and incorporate a deal with Madrid, overseen by the EU, as part of the new Labour government’s wider reset in relations with Europe. He has already signalled his intent and spoken to his Spanish counterpart José Manuel Albares soon after the UK general election over the summer.

Gibraltar’s post-Brexit status will also be one of the first issues in the intray of incoming British Ambassador Alexander Ellis KCMG, who took over from Hugh Elliott last week. His diplomatic skills may be necessary to get a treaty deal over the line, some eight years after the Brexit referendum. 

Ellis previously worked as the British ambassador in Brazil and Portugal and was also British High Commissioner in India. Following the Brexit referendum he also worked for two years in the department responsible for the UK’s withdrawal from the EU, something that may have factored into his appointment.

READ MORE: UK ambassador to Spain bids farewell to Brits – who is his successor?

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