Fierce political row as CM says audit report is being ‘weaponised’ and GSD accuses Govt of ‘disgraceful’ deflection

The row over ex gratia payments by the Gibraltar Government totalling £11m between 2018 and 2024 and recorded in the Principal Auditor’s 2018/19 report intensified on Tuesday, descending into fierce political exchanges.

Amid questions about political favouritism after the former Principal Auditor, Anthony Sacramento, identified “questionable” payments made to people linked to the GSLP, the Government defended its record and said the settlements were about financial risk management.

It said it had made hundreds of such settlements and warned against the “weaponisation” of an audit report it described as “biased”, adding only certain payments had been singled out for criticism.

But the GSD accused the Government of a “disgraceful” attempt to tarnish Mr Sacramento as a means of deflecting from legitimate criticism laid out in his report.

The Government said it “receives and follows” legal advice in all settlements reached with current or former employees or officers of public entities.

It said the settlements are reached to protect the taxpayer from the “greater costs and risks associated with lengthy and uncertain litigation”.

“Despite the unfair treatment of these matters by the former Principal Auditor and the sensationalist framing adopted by some of the coverage, such settlements are always guided by legal principles and are assessed on their individual merits,” No.6 said in a statement.

“Their purpose is not political favouritism, but financial risk management.”

No.6 said that while the former Principal Auditor’s report highlighted a settlement involving an individual described as a GSLP supporter, it did not mention that the Government had also settled claims with individuals who are or were aligned with the GSD, including a former minister.

It said the Government “does not and has never” taken political affiliation into account when making these decisions.

“The agitation that has been generated by the publication and coverage of the former Principal Auditor’s report, a report that the Government considers to be biased and politically motivated, has now led to libellous accusations, threats of violence, and members of our community feeling publicly vilified,” No.6 said.

“This is entirely unacceptable and damaging to the fabric of our democracy.”

Chief Minister Fabian Picardo said the audit report had been “weaponised” against the Government “in a manner that is worse than unfair”.

He highlighted a photograph that was used in coverage showing him with a GSLP supporter who was one of hundreds of people the Government had settled claims with.

“I am confident that I have acted properly in settling claims from people of all party-political persuasion and none,” Mr Picardo said.

“Sensationalising one settlement is to seek to suggest that people who support the governing party should be dealt with worse than those who do not. That is unfair.”

“What is fair is what I have done, and will continue to do, which is to treat all individuals, of all political parties, in the same way.”

"I am confident that we have acted properly in controlling overtime like never before, in resolving issues in the collection of refuse, in properly settling legal claims against the Government and every aspect of our functions as a Government.”

“I will continue to respond all the unwarranted and biased allegations made against me and my colleagues in the Government and in the civil service and the public sector generally."

"I look forward to addressing all of these aspects of the report in Parliament and I hope that the reporting of our responses to the former Principal Auditor’s biased report will be as thorough and investigative as those we have seen about the biased report itself.”

Mr Picardo issued the statement after allegedly receiving death threats which he linked to what he described as “the sensationalist nature and language” used in the “biased” audit report.

That last observation drew a scathing response from the GSD, which accused the Chief Minister of “new lows” in “wild trashing” of the former Principal Auditor.

The GSD said the claim was “hugely serious” and amounted to an “implicit attempt to intimidate” a constitutional officer and anyone following in his footsteps from doing their job and “speaking their mind”.

“Any threats of violence are totally unacceptable and the GSD wholly rejects any such threats as reprehensible,” said Keith Azopardi, the Leader of the Opposition.

“But democracy and accountability is not served by wild language or exaggerated imputations by the GSLP Government.”

“It creates a side-show that is not about the substance of the issues raised in the report.”

“Perhaps the Government need to be more reflective and understand that it is their conduct of Gibraltar’s financial affairs that have legitimately led to the criticisms by the auditor.”

“They are the authors of their own misfortune. No one else is to blame.”

“This is just the desperate GSLP continuing their campaign to discredit the man they openly commended as dedicated and professional only a few weeks ago.”

“Just because the report is not to their liking it is biased.”

“If you do not agree with them then you are unfit for office or are biased or are imputed other motives.”

The GSD said that if there were answers to the issues raised in the report, these should be stated.

But it noted, by way of example, that there had been no “comprehensive attempt” to address the detail of questions raised by the former Principal Auditor about ex gratia payments recorded in the audit report.

“The attitude of the GSLP Government is disgraceful,” Mr Azopardi said.

“They are on their last legs of credibility if all they can do is undertake a daily trashing of the auditor that only the most sycophantic supporters could believe.”