Govt and GSD clash over McGrail Inquiry restriction notice

The Gibraltar Government and the GSD clashed over the weekend after the Government issued a Restriction Notice under new powers in the controversial Inquiries Act 2024 to keep references to Gibraltar’s security systems out of the public eye during the McGrail Inquiry, citing “vital public interest” grounds.

The Restriction Notice, issued following a meeting of the Cabinet on Friday, relates to “a small and very limited number of references” to the National Security Centralised Intelligence System in documents which are before the McGrail Inquiry, No.6 Convent Place said.

The restricted information will be seen by the chairman of the Inquiry and lawyers for the various parties, and does not relate to Chief Minister Fabian Picardo, former police Commissioner Ian McGrail or any person, No.6 said.

The Government had offered the GSD a confidential briefing on Privy Council terms to explain the contents of the notice and the public interest grounds for keeping it private.

But on Sunday, the GSD said the “eleventh-hour” offer of a briefing was “tactical” and “smacks of an insincere afterthought”.

Keith Azopardi, the Leader of the Opposition, declined to be briefed on confidential terms as to the reasons for the notice because he did not want to be “gagged”.

Instead, he accepted to receive a copy of the notice pending the Inquiry chairman’s reaction to it and any decision on what should be published.

But the GSD said the copy it had been provided with did not include the schedule to the document, which sets out the detail of the information to be kept private.

That rendered the document “absolutely meaningless”, the GSD said.

“It is like receiving a law that explains that things in a schedule are rendered confidential and not to be published but not showing you what those things are,” Mr Azopardi said.

“That has, in effect, rendered the offer to show us the Restriction Notice on Privy Council terms absolutely meaningless. We make clear therefore that we remain in the dark as to its scope.”

The GSD said it would not “go along” with actions that excluded material from the public inquiry in line with what it described as the Government’s “jaundiced perspective” on a process in which it and Mr Picardo were core participants.

“As we explained on Friday we have serious misgivings that this is all about sidestepping the chairman’s previous rulings on evidence,” Mr Azopardi said.

“The chairman has already rejected the Government’s public interest submissions when they sought to withhold evidence some months ago.”

“If that is what is happening then it is a transparent manoeuvre.”

“In effect it is now obvious that while the Government said they would show us the notice on Friday they have only provided us that part of the notice which does not show us precisely what they are restricting. That is as good as providing nothing to us.”

Reacting to the GSD, the Government said the Chief Minister had been in contact with Mr Azopardi to confirm his position on the briefing.

“Mr Picardo made clear to Mr Azopardi that the schedule to the Restriction Notice cannot be disclosed – for national security and public interest reasons – other than in the context of the Privy Council terms briefing which is being offered, but that it would be disclosed then and in that context,” No.6 said in a statement.

“The Government deeply regrets the decision taken by the Leader of the Opposition which fails to put the national security of Gibraltar and the common public interest of all Gibraltarians ahead of party-political interests.”

“If Mr Azopardi had accepted the Privy Council terms briefing, it would have been abundantly clear to him, as it was to all Cabinet ministers, that the Restriction Notice had to be applied to protect the National Security of Gibraltar and the public interest.”

“His Majesty’s Government of Gibraltar calls on the Leader of the Opposition to reconsider his decision and agree to the briefing on Privy Council terms, so that he can see for himself that the only aspects dealt with by the Restriction Notice are those of National Security and the public interest and do not relate to the Chief Minister, Fabian Picardo, or the Former Commissioner of Police, Ian McGrail.”

The GSD said the Government had gone into “social media overdrive” over the weekend “…to undo the damage they have caused to themselves politically and to Gibraltar’s wider reputation.”

“Gibraltar should not be fooled at the window-dressing that is going on here,” the Opposition said.

“The GSLP spin machine is in overdrive; offering late in the day confidential briefings to the Leader of the Opposition; and bizarrely seeking to turn the tables on the Opposition as the party responsible for damaging Gibraltar’s international reputation.”

“Something which is demonstrably the reverse given that the effect on Gibraltar’s international reputation lies at the Government’s door.”

“All of this begs the question: why did the offer of consultation not materialise before the Bill was inelegantly rushed through Parliament? “

“The atmosphere of trust should and could have been created by the Government in advance of acting the way it did.”

“What trust and confidence can the GSD and indeed the wider population, have at this eleventh-hour approach?”

Among the ministers who took to social media over the weekend was Sir Joe Bossano.

“In over 50 years in politics, I have never seen an Opposition behave as selfishly as Keith Azopardi is behaving,” Sir Joe wrote on Facebook.

“Azopardi’s accusations deliberately misrepresent what this decision entails and he does not care how much damage he does to Gibraltar.”

“We have made a decision as a Cabinet to protect Gibraltar, which is the most important thing for any Government.:

“The information we have excluded has nothing to do with Fabian Picardo or with Ian McGrail or any person.”

“It is technical and it cannot be published to keep Gibraltar safe.”

“Anyone who thinks I would put Gibraltar's interest at risk doesn't know me.”