Gibraltar deal 'would benefit residents'

Mr Hain said the proposal would make "no iota of difference" to people living in Gibraltar - except that it would benefit their daily lives.

He said joint sovereignty was a "fantastic deal" for Britons living on the Rock while also resolving historical and practical problems.

Last week, Foreign Secretary Jack Straw confirmed that Britain was willing to share sovereignty of Gibraltar with Spain.

He told MPs that the two governments were "closer than ever before to overcoming nearly 300 years of fraught history".

The Commons statement provoked anger, with Gibraltarians taking to the street in protest.

Border delays

Any deal between the UK and Spain will be put to a vote among the 27,000 people on the Rock.

Mr Straw hopes to persuade them of the benefits of shared sovereignty, which he says includes an end to border restrictions which lead to lengthy delays for the many people who cross into Spain every day to work.

And Mr Hain said on Sunday: "Frankly joint sovereignty will not make one iota of practical difference to daily life on the Rock, which will remain British.

"Their traditions, their customs, their citizenship will remain British for as long as they like.

"OK, a Spanish flag might fly on the Rock but what does that amount to? Life will go on as usual, except for the better."

He told Sky News that Gibraltar would flourish if the deal was accepted.

Talks postponed

Any agreement would not be a "stepping stone to full Spanish control over Gibraltar", he insisted.

"We were never going to hand over control of Gibraltar to Spain - that's not on the cards, full stop, end of story."

He said talks, postponed last week after a reshuffle of the Spanish government, would continue in the autumn, with sticking points remaining such as the future of the UK military base on the Rock.

He again urged Gibraltar's chief minister Peter Caruana to join the talks, saying: "It is a fantastic deal and a brilliant future for Gibraltar if we can get the discussions going."

The Tories have said they would reverse any decision over Gibraltar reached by the government "unless convinced that there has been consent freely given".