Trade, People, and the Rock: Spain–UK Relations in the Post-Brexit Era

This paper examines the relationship between Spain and the United Kingdom after Brexit, using as its analytical framework a ‘triangular’ model (Fossum and Lord, 2023; Davies and Kassim, 2025) with three interdependent sides. The first side is the strictly bilateral dimension, characterised by very strong economic and interpersonal ties, forged over a quarter of a century of joint membership of the EU, even though political interaction between Madrid and London was never remarkable due to differing views on the European integration process itself and tensions over Gibraltar. The UK’s withdrawal from the EU has indeed affected this British Spanish relationship which, in any case, is structured and constrained by the other two sides of the triangle. The second side, Spain–EU, serves as an important structuring framework, considering not only the clearly pro-European stance as a member state (which led Spain to defend, above all, the unity of the 27 and the integrity of the Single Market), but also the national perspectives on the functioning of the EU in the post-Brexit era. Finally, the third side refers to the framework of the EU–UK legal architecture (first in the negotiations on the Withdrawal Agreement and subsequently in those on the Trade and Cooperation Agreement) which at the same time enables and constrains what both countries can do in defence of its priorities. Seen five years after Brexit, and although Spain deplored the outcome of the referendum, the overall balance is pragmatic and relatively positive: there has been renewed momentum in mutual trade and investment, the effects on the people-to-people dimension (tourists, residents, young students or professionals) have been limited, and Gibraltar is set to be integrated into the Schengen area, diluting its character for Spain as a colonial remnant. For its part, the political relationship remains far below the potential that may exist between two of Europe’s largest democracies, although the difficult future of the continent’s security could help to bring them closer together.