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Spanish Government being urged to meet part of pensions bill
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The Spanish Government is being urged to meet part of the bill to pay the Spanish pensions as part of a solution.
PANORAMA has been reporting in recent days that it was the Spanish government at the time which created the problem by withdrawing the Spanish labour force from the Rock and they cannot escape unscathed.
In the past, the Gibraltar Government repaid what was due to them from the level of contributions made, while the UK made a major payout of ?200million in the days of the GSLP government, with the proviso that their obligations had been met.
UPDATED
The Spanish pensioners are meanwhile asking for a back-payment which is seen as sky-high and also want their pensions updated.
The tripartite meetings has been considering the pensions issue and a working group has been considering what exactly is the implication of the claim.
There have been comments recently by Spanish senator Jose Carracao that "things are going well", and that there are great possibilities of an agreement being reached.
The La Linea pensioners association Alpeg has described as "very positive" Tuesday's meeting in a Torremolinos restaurant, as they see an end to their problem.
Alpeg has been saying that the Spanish Government should also dip into their pockets in seeking a solution.
FACTS
The UK representative in the tripartite forum has spoken of the need to examine "the historical facts" surrounding the pensions issue.
Such facts include that it was a Spanish government which created the problem in the first place.
It is believed that the Spanish government is expected to contribute to the pensions bill if there is to be a breakthrough.
The fact that there is now optimism about this problem being resolved is a pointer that there may be movement in the Spanish position.
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