Chief Minister’s National Day Message 2026
Gibraltar's Chief Minister delivered his final National Day message, reflecting on the territory's 59-year history of self-determination and the challenges of post-Brexit negotiations. He emphasized the resilience of the Gibraltarian people in maintaining their sovereignty despite external political pressures.
Why it matters
This address marks a significant political transition for Gibraltar and underscores the ongoing geopolitical complexities regarding its status post-Brexit.
Below follows the Chief Minister’s National Day Message 2026:
On Thursday we mark fifty-nine years since the day our forefathers went to the polls and told the world that only we THE GIBRALTARIANS will decide the future of our Rock.
They did not vote in comfort. They voted with a dictator in Spain waiting to punish them for having the courage to do the right thing. Vote with their hearts and minds for what they believed to be the best for their children.
They took a pencil. They made a cross on a ballot paper.
And they did it knowing, full well, that life was about to get harder. They stuck to principle in the face of threats.
Everything I have done as your Chief Minister, every negotiation I have sat through, every long night in Brussels, Madrid, London and New York, has been in the service of that decision.
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