Governor hails Gib treaty agreement as ‘real triumph’ after complex negotiations 

Lieutenant General Sir Ben Bathurst, the Governor of Gibraltar and Commander in Chief, knows about complicated negotiations. 

Before arriving on the Rock in June last year, he was the UK’s military representative to NATO and the EU, working in Brussels with both the UK delegation to NATO and the UK mission to the EU. 

It allowed him to follow the progress of the Gibraltar UK/EU treaty negotiation “quite closely”, and its technical complexity became immediately evident. 

“In NATO, I took part in negotiations every single day, most hours of the day, with 31 other nations,” Sir Ben said, speaking during an interview with the Chronicle. 

“I know how long these things take and how complicated it can be in many cases.” 

“And I really do think this is one of the most complicated negotiations I've ever seen.” 

“I think this has been an incredibly difficult thing to achieve, and yet it's been achieved.” 

“It’s a real triumph [and] I don't think people should underestimate just how difficult this was for all those people, whether it’s the Chief Minister, our Foreign Secretary, Commissioner Sefcovic or Minister Albares, and then all the layers below of chief negotiators and Attorney General, and then all the technical experts.” 

Spain and the EU had been tough in the negotiation, he said, but ultimately a mutually satisfactory agreement was eked out from the prolonged process. 

In particular, the approach from all parties to the thorny issue of sovereignty was “really sensible”, effectively parking it to one side. 

Sir Ben echoed the words of Europe Minister Stephen Doughty, who said in the House of Commons last week that the treaty sovereignty clause makes clear the agreement is “explicitly not about Gibraltar's sovereignty”. 

“The sovereignty clause absolutely protects the UK sovereignty of Gibraltar and, in doing so, the self determination of the Gibraltar people,” Sir Ben said. 

“You possibly could argue that was the single most important achievement, to agree something on that [issue] that then did not impact on the movement of people and movement of trade.” 

What prompted that sensible approach from all sides was likely a confluence of different factors including Labour’s reset of UK relations with the EU, although the negotiation was well advanced by that point including under previous UK governments. 

“I suppose it's just an alignment of people's willingness to get things done,” Sir Ben said.  

“Because just as for Gibraltar this is economically important, it's also economically important for Spain, particularly in La Linea and Andalucia.” 

Additionally, the “brutal reality” of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine also set things into context. 

“This [Gibraltar negotiation] is absolutely something that we should be able to agree between the four elements in the negotiations and we should concentrate on the really, really important things, which are things like Ukraine,” Sir Ben said. 

IMPLEMENTATION CHALLENGE 

Once the treaty text is finalised in the autumn and subsequently ratified, the next step will be implementation, a process that will be challenging. 

Sir Ben acknowledged the challenge, albeit from a different vantage point. 

“Everything is a challenge in life, but there are so many positives about [the treaty], in terms of this is the solution to a whole range of frictions that we're already dealing with,” he said, adding Gibraltar had always been resilient in the past when faced with major change. 

“I’m not going to downplay the challenge, but it will also be quite exciting,” Sir Ben said, adding the changes will come in a “much more positive environment”. 

And he added too that it was crucial to remember the alternative to a treaty was not the situation as it stands now, but rather a hard border, something that would be “much, much worse”. 

Sir Ben, a veteran of 40 years of military service including in senior ranks and roles, also offered reassurance to people concerned about security once immigration controls at the land frontier are removed. 

For four decades, Sir Ben has “worried about defence and security every day”. Even without change at the border, security was something that always required attention and focus because threats were constantly changing. 

“So there’s an element of this which is business as usual,” he said. 

The treaty will enable enhanced sharing of intelligence including checks against the Schengen information database, and there have been “great improvements” in technology ranging from predictive facial recognition data to the use of AI. 

“And therefore, just as there are challenges, there are also opportunities,” he said, adding that relations with Spanish law enforcement in this respect were “absolutely critical”. 

For law enforcement agencies and uniformed services, there is “common cause”. 

“In their DNA is to maintain law and order and protect the public, so I think these are common areas around which we will be able to work together.” 

POLICING 

Sir Ben arrived in Gibraltar at a difficult time for the Royal Gibraltar Police, for which he is ultimately responsible under the Constitution. 

What he found were officers who were “very focused, very professional”. 

But “clearly there have been challenges”, so he put most of his attention to supporting the RGP, working with the Chief Minister, Fabian Picardo, Justice Minister Nigel Feetham, the Gibraltar Police Authority and the Gibraltar Police Federation too. 

One of the strings emerging from those conversations is a process to reinforce the governance work Gibraltar Police Authority, including the possibility of recruiting paid staff in some roles to help with an onerous workload currently handled by volunteers. 

Another aspect also under consideration is ensuring that complaints are not elevated to the GPA prematurely.  

“I think there have to be certain things that have to be looked at by the RGP themselves and that there will be then a threshold,” Sir Ben said.  

“If you left it to the complainant, everyone would say it will need to be investigated by a UK police force.” 

“I think it’s down to process.” 

“Every organisation by and large starts within its own internal process and then you have a system, like you do in law in terms of appeal and what have you, of how it moves up the chain.” 

“Otherwise, the GPA just gets swamped dealing with things that the RGP could have perfectly well dealt with and far quicker, which would have been far better for the complainant.” 

Sir Ben was firm in his view that, despite the challenges of recent years, most people in Gibraltar think the police do a good job. 

“They’re almost universally supportive and they do a fantastic job, the police,” he said. 

“A society that doesn't have trust in its police, you know, that is very problematic.”  

“But I think people do trust the police and it's a funny old thing, lots of people criticise the police, but when you need them, they are the people you call.” 

“And if they don't answer the phone, if they don't attend, if they don't come out, where do you go? 

“So one does need to look after and nurture and support our police.” 

There is change too on the operational side of policing with the newly appointed Commissioner, former Met commander Owain Richards, who is settling in and assessing where his priorities will lie. 

One of those will be boosting recruitment, particularly of local entrants. 

Sir Ben acknowledged the challenge of recruitment in a small community where 75% of young people go to university. 

While there is “plenty of room for graduates” in the RGP as in the Royal Gibraltar Regiment, there is strong competition from other employers both in the public and private sectors. 

The Convent itself has just recruited two Gibraltarian candidates to reinforce its team and “bind Gibraltarian perspectives into our work” alongside its close partnership with the Gibraltar Government. 

Policing, he said, is a “demanding profession”, particularly given Gibraltar’s size, but there is an unavoidable reality. 

“What I’d ask is that everyone reflect on encouraging people to consider the Royal Gibraltar Police as a career option, because that is what Gibraltar needs,” Sir Ben said. 

“It needs good men and women to be prepared to join the police.” 

And while the RGP has lost a lot of senior, experienced officers in recent years, “there are still plenty of really capable people who are younger”.  

“And it doesn't follow that somehow competence and age are inextricably linked,” he added. 

“When you look at really successful people across all our organisations, you could see they were really successful at an early age.” 

“So it's a matter of spotting the talent [and] bringing the right people through.” 

There are also opportunities to employ police civilians, be they former officers or specialists in areas such as economic crime. 

The new Commissioner “is ideally placed” given his background and experience to take a view on this and prioritise uniformed officers to “where they’re absolutely required”, while finding different ways to meet other demands. 

PUBLIC SCRUTINY 

On the McGrail Inquiry, Sir Ben said he was “not in the business of prejudging”, adding the correct approach was to await the report of Inquiry chairman Sir Peter Openshaw. 

“But whatever happens, we will address it,” he said.  

“And I think sometimes, you know, it's not so much what's happened, but what do you actually then do about it?” 

“And that would be my focus.” 

Sir Ben said he looked positively on the Inquiry process, adding a transparent and democratic system was the best way to operate and learn lessons for the future when things go wrong. 

“I don't think one should be afraid of public scrutiny,” he said.  

“I think it's implicitly part of our system and if something comes out that's uncomfortable, again, if it's happened, it's happened.” 

“It's what we do about it next. Do we learn the lessons?” 

“I'm sure it's been very uncomfortable for certain people to be questioned in this way, but I think it is the right thing to do to get to the bottom of differences of opinion as to what happened and whether it was right or not.” 

Sir Ben reflected too on the public engagement with the Inquiry and how Gibraltar’s “very sophisticated population” had followed the process, gathered the facts and was now awaiting Sir Peter Openshaw’s conclusions. 

He praised Gibraltar’s media within that process, saying it was important that journalists had covered and presented the facts rather than taking a view “to stir up an influence”. 

“Because that’s very easy to do, but it doesn’t lead to healthy outcomes,” he said. 

AUDIT CONTROVERSY 

The Governor also offered his views on the ongoing controversy about the Principal Auditor’s 2018/19 report. 

Speaking last Thursday before the tabling of parliamentary motions that have since further fuelled the controversy surrounding the audit report, Sir Ben said “this was the process working”. 

“So people elect the Government, the Government runs for a period, auditors audit, facts get assembled,” he said. 

“The Government and ministries have the right to correct and offer their perspectives, then there is a debate in Parliament and the Opposition can challenge and the Government is held to account.” 

“And throughout that process, the media is putting the information into the public domain and then reflections are made, lessons are learned, the process is improved and it then goes full cycle to the next election.” 

“So what is happening is largely what should be happening.”  

“The only thing I would say is that, these are complicated technical matters and the report should contain the Government's perspective and any challenge it wishes to make, because otherwise the process isn't working quite as it should.” 

Asked whether people should read anything into the fact that the new Principal Auditor, much like the new Commissioner of Police, are both UK nationals rather than Gibraltarians, Sir Ben said the recruitment process in both cases had been one of open competition. 

Both candidates were chosen by commissions mostly made up of Gibraltarians who made recommendations to the Governor, who accepted them without change. 

Sir Ben said Gibraltar was “a fantastic place that works so well and should be completely confident” in bringing in expertise from outside periodically and learning from their knowledge and experience. 

“I don’t think people should be thinking that it’s back to the old days, that it’s an imposition,” he said. 

“It’s not. It was a job advert that was responded to by a number of people and the selection was made by 90% Gibraltarian panel.” 

DEFENCE AND SECURITY 

Sir Ben also spoke about Gibraltar’s role within the wider UK defence network in volatile world marred by conflict. 

The UK Government’s recent Strategic Defence Review [SDR] highlighted the “critical” role of Gibraltar and other OTs in support of the UK and its allies. 

“Gibraltar remains a joint operating base with an extremely useful naval base, a runway, a Gibraltar Regiment who spend quite a bit of time operating outside Gibraltar helping on wider tasks,” he said.  

“So I think it's a key part and you saw that in the SDR, a very positive commitment to maintaining Gibraltar as a base.” 

Sir Ben highlighted in this context the resilience of Gibraltar’s approach to defence and security, and how the military and security agencies work closely with the Government and all its different agencies and departments, including ensuring robust contingency plans are in place and regularly rehearsed. 

Addressing concerns raised during a recent Defence Committee hearing in the Housing of Commons that the UK OTs were “a soft underbelly” in a world filled with threats, Sir Ben was sanguine. 

“Put simply, I think you’d always be a target,” he said. 

“It's a question of whether you want to be a defended target or an undefended target.” 

“And I would say it’s always better being a defended target.” 

Gibraltar is “absolutely” a defended target, with “all sorts of ways” to identify threats. 

“The fact is we've got a good focus here,” he said. 

“We're not complacent, we just need to continue to work.” 

And while Spain often views the UK military presence in Gibraltar with a degree of suspicion, Sir Ben noted the important cooperation both through NATO and bilaterally, for example the participation of a Spanish frigate in the UK Carrier Strike Group. 

“I don’t fully understand Spain’s position on UK Defence in Gibraltar and need to work on getting to the bottom of that,” he said. 

As for the uniformed civilian services such as police, Customs and the Borders and Coastguard Agency, “there is good cooperation already and we can certainly develop that further in a treaty era.”