Together Gibraltar

We are appalled by the Government's decision to increase housing list eligibility from 10 to 15 years of residency.

This Government made a commitment to reduce the housing list "to zero" by the next election. They have utterly failed to deliver and are now trying to control the numbers by changing the rules.

While the Government has made meaningful investments in supporting homeownership, they have completely neglected affordable rental accommodation for over a decade. This has allowed private rents to skyrocket and left the housing list as the only realistic option for thousands of Gibraltarians.

Check out our full press release in the comments.

Gibraltar deserves better than a government that puts personal loyalty above the rule of law.

Read on for our initial response to the Openshaw Report released yesterday and follow for more updates as we analyse the report, its findings, and its recommendations in full...

A 'grossly improper attempt by Mr Picardo to interfere in an active criminal investigation by the RGP, to protect his friend and mentor, James Levy.'

That is the finding which has most struck us from our initial reading of the Openshaw Inquiry Report. After less than 24 hours to digest this extensive report, we wanted to present our preliminary response to the executive summary and its damning conclusions.

The Chief Minister’s Interference

One thing is abundantly clear: the Chief Minister has grossly overstepped his authority on behalf of his friendship with James Levy and his connections to Hassans. Mr Picardo's actions have been found to be constitutionally improper, ethically questionable, and damaging to Gibraltar's interests and reputation.

The report also makes clear that the Chief Minister misled the Gibraltar Police Authority about his reasons for wanting Commissioner McGrail to retire, prioritising his personal and professional relationships over the integrity of our police force and justice system.

Gibraltar’s Reputation

All this comes at a time when Gibraltar is about to embark on one of the most crucial turning points in our history.

International press immediately picked up on the descriptions of the Chief Minister's 'sinister' behaviour. It would be far easier for Gibraltar to make the case that our institutions are independent and robust, had the Chief Minister not spent so much of his time consolidating his own power and making the Gibraltar Government synonymous with himself.

We still believe in Gibraltar's institutions and we will fight anyone who suggests otherwise. But it is clear that major reforms are needed to prevent a repeat of this whole embarrassing saga.

No More Legal Challenges

The last thing we need to come out of this report are spurious ‘legal challenges’ going after the Inquiry Chairman or his findings, as the Chief Minister has already hinted at. We strongly and fervently condemn any attempt by the Chief Minister to obstruct or challenge these findings, and we hope that every patriotic Gibraltarian will join us.

We acted too slowly to prevent the government's vindictive attacks on the Principal Auditor, but we will not let that kind of self-serving behaviour (not to mention the heinous waste of taxpayers' money) happen again.

A Warning to the Opposition

What we also don't need is an opposition party turning these findings into political opportunism, trying to link first-term Ministers to a conspiracy they had no part in.

The GSD's refusal to name Mr Levy or Hassans in their statement shows they are still wedded to the 'Gibraltar PLC' mentality that took root under their watch. This glaring omission speaks volumes about whether they are actually willing to tackle the cronyism at the heart of this scandal. They will not change the core issues which allow law firms and powerful individuals to use the government to enrich themselves, just as they did in the days of Peter Caruana who himself got to profit from representing Mr Picardo in this very inquiry.

The Heart of the Matter

Rather than let justice take its course, the report found that a 'close circle of professional colleagues were seeking to sort this perceived problem out between themselves'. That, in a nutshell, is precisely what this GSLP-led Gibraltar has become. A place where a defendant's lawyer felt comfortable directly contacting the Attorney General on behalf of his client, a place where the Chief Minister felt comfortable hosting this defendant and texting legal strategies to his lawyer about an ongoing investigation.

Gibraltar Deserves Better

Gibraltar deserves better than a government that puts personal loyalty above the rule of law. We will continue to fight for a Gibraltar where our institutions serve the people, not the powerful.

ENDS