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Madrid will demand the Rock will be excluded from all agreements between Britain and the European Union after Brexit if the withdrawal agreement is reopened in future talks. Diplomatic sources have warned that Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez will use every opportunity in the future Brexit debate to revive his country’s bid for joint sovereignty over Gibraltar, which Madrid has contested since it became a British territory in 1713. The warnings have been echoed by senior Brussels figures, who have lashed out at suggestions by Mrs May that she intends to return to the negotiating table to break the current Brexit deadlock.

A source in Madrid said: “In every agreement reached with Great Britain there will be an asterisk which explains that the deal will not affect Gibraltar. “After Brexit, Spain wants to include in writing in every document signed with the EU that it has nothing to do with Gibraltar, which should be based on a different relationship. “This strategy will be followed in all agreements that will be signed.” MPs will take part in a series of votes on Mrs May’s latest Brexit strategy this evening in the House of Commons.

Brexit news: Spain to launch new bid for Gibraltar as Theresa May promises renegotiation of backstop

Amendments tabled by MPs from across Parliament will shape how the Prime Minister proceeds. Mrs May has urged MPs to hand her a mandate to return to Brussels to reopen the withdrawal agreement that she agreed with EU leaders at a special summit last November. Graham Brady, the chairman of the 1922 Committee, has tabled an amendment that, if successful, will move the Government to replace the backstop with "alternative arrangements to avoid a hard border”. Mrs May told the Commons that they should support the proposal in order to send the EU a message that there is a Commons majority for her deal if the backstop is altered.

She added: “We must address the nature of concerns in this House over the Northern Irish backstop. “The fundamental concern is what is meant to be a temporary arrangement. And this message has been unequivocal that this House wants changes to the backstop before it will back a deal. “That message has come from Conservative backbenchers, opposition members and our confidence and supply partners in the DUP.” But Manfred Weber, the German MEP vying to replace Jean-Claude Juncker as the EU’s most senior official, said any attempt to reopen the deal will have stark “consequences”.

Theresa May pledged to return to Brussels for negotiations on her EU withdrawal deal

He said: “If there is now a unilateral attempt to reopen the agreement, the consequence will be that not just the backstop has to be renegotiated — then the Gibraltar question, the question of how much money Britain has to pay for exiting, the question of citizens' rights will have to be renegotiated." “If we reopen it, then everything will be reopened. And to be honest, I don't see much sense in that,” he added. Gibraltar will leave the EU alongside the UK but has been at the heart of continued power grab for the territory by Madrid. Last November, as EU leaders gathered in Brussels to sign off Mrs May’s deal, Spain threatened to derail the process by demanding further assurances that the Rock will not be part of future UK-EU agreements.