Spanish mayor proposes tax break for Gib operators relocating to La Linea
Juan Franco says the better alternative to moving to Malta would be for firms to establish a small office in the neighbouring Spanish town
The mayor of La Linea, the neighbouring Spanish town to Gibraltar, has proposed a special tax break for gambling companies considering operating back-office operations in the town.
Ahead of meetings with the Spanish foreign secretary Josep Borrell, mayor Juan Franco told Spanish regional newspaper EuropaSur he would suggest a “reduced company tax exclusively for insurance and online gambling companies” threatened by the consequences of Brexit.
He suggested Gibraltar-based companies move to or set up small back offices in La Linea instead of relocating to or launching additional operations in Malta.
“The intention is to set up a complementary economy, we know that 15% of the insurance companies are going to leave Gibraltar and those workers, who are foreigners, will also leave, we want them to stay in La Línea,” Franco said.
Gibraltar-based lawyer Nigel Feetham has expressed support for Franco’s proposal, stating it would see Gibraltar and La Linea working together.
“Why not La Linea, keeping employment in the area and plugged into the existing infrastructure in Gibraltar? In this scenario Gibraltar and La Linea would not be in competition with each other; instead they would complement each other,” Feetham added.
Since the Brexit referendum in June 2016, Franco has made staunch efforts to protect La Linea’s livelihood after it was hit by the extremely low GBP rates following the vote.
Both William Hill and 888 have announced Brexit contingency plans to set up new offices in Malta.
Speaking to EGR following its H1 results, William Hill CEO Philip Bowcock said: “Depending on how Brexit turns out, we may not be able to offer services from Gibraltar into the rest of Europe and we will use Malta to do that.
“Gibraltar is our online hub and it’s key to us. We’ve got some great people there and it works well.”