party leader and therefore as Leader of the Opposition. Leader of the Opposition As leader of the Opposition during early 1976, he took part in a Gibraltarian inter-party Constitution Committee which began to work on a proposal of constitutional changes that involved a further integration of Gibraltar with the United Kingdom. Xiberras and the then Chief Minister, Joshua Hassan, travelled to London in June 1976 but were unable to convince the Government of the United Kingdom which, in response issued the Hattersley Memorandum which rejected the proposals. This effectively caused the IWBP to disband. Xiberras also accompanied Chief Minister Hassan, in his position as Leader of the Opposition, as part of the British delegation to Strasbourg, France for meetings with Spanish Foreign Minister Marcelino Oreja. This was to be the first official Spanish Government recognition of Gibraltar's elected representatives. Xiberras renewed his seat in the 1976 elections again, this time as independent, as he had already resigned as leader of the declining IWBP. In 1977, he again took over as Leader of the Opposition, after the decline of the Gibraltar Democratic Movement bench, led by former IWBP member Joe Bossano. However, Xiberras resigned from his seat in the Gibraltar House of Assembly in 1979, due to family commitments and relocated to the United Kingdom. He was succeeded by Peter Isola. Further involvement Although absent from Gibraltar, Xiberras continued his involvement in the politics of Gibraltar by authoring various articles and letters in the local press, opposing the 2002 Joint Sovereignty Deal between the British and Spanish Governments and also the European Constitution, on the ground that it would "make Gibraltar a disputed territory 'in perpetuity'". Xiberras also contested the 2003 elections, obtaining 1,395 votes and therefore not winning a seat at the House of Assembly. Other work Xiberras also represented Gibraltar in a variety of sports and was the National Hockey Manager who led the Gibraltar XI to success across Europe. He offered professional counselling and psychotherapy from his own practice, Surbiton Counselling, in Surbiton. Honours Maurice Xiberras was one of the four recipients of the Gibraltar Medallion of Honour in 2009 "for his exceptional service to the political interests of Gibraltar and its people" and was therefore recorded in the Gibraltar Roll of Honour. Death Maurice Xiberras died suddenly over the weekend of 18–19 March 2017. See also List of Gibraltarians Politics of Gibraltar References External links Maurice Xiberras