Charlie Smith
SPAIN has threatened the UK with legal action over a new housing project in Gibraltar.
Madrid sent a letter to London on February 19 it has emerged, as it disputes the construction of 665 new flats near Gibraltar’s Eastern Beach.
A Spanish Government source said plans involved ‘illegal land reclamation in waters under Spanish sovereignty’.
The affordable housing project started by the Government of Gibraltar is called the Hassan Centenary Terraces.
Prices in the high-rise development start at €89,000 for a one-bedroom apartment.
An initial complaint from Spain was sent to the UK in 2017, but they received no reply.
But the government source said, if London fails to respond again, then Madrid will be ‘launching whatever legal action it deems most appropriate to defend its position’.
Currently, the area the Government of Gibraltar wants to build on is a car park and other land.
Whilst the area on the architectural plans shows the apartment blocks near the water’s edge, it does not appear to show any encroachment in to Spanish waters.
This latest argument over Gibraltar’s sovereignty comes after a long exchange of heated activity between Spain and the UK.
Spain has sent its warships into Gibraltar waters in recent months, and even inserted a footnote into EU legislation calling the Rock a colony.
