GSD says Inquiry report must be published ‘immediately and by Monday’

The GSD said on Tuesday that the McGrail Inquiry report should be published “immediately and by Monday”, assuming an inquest that has further delayed its release concludes by Friday.

The Gibraltar Government said on Monday that the report would now be published next week after the Deputy Coroner, Karl Tonna, raised concerns about its potential impact the ongoing jury inquest.

The report had been due to be published on December 5 but was pushed back to this week after Chief Minister Fabian Picardo underwent emergency eye surgery for a detached retina.

Mr Picardo, who wanted to be available to address reactions to the report, expects to be sufficiently recovered by the end of this week.

But the ongoing inquest into the deaths at sea of two Spanish nationals in a collision involving an RGP patrol boat centres on an incident that figured prominently in the McGrail Inquiry hearings.

The concern was that the release of the Inquiry’s findings or opinions on these events could result in the jury being “improperly influenced by any such external assessment”, the Government said on Monday.

But while the Opposition acknowledged the ongoing inquest, it said there should be no further delay once proceedings were concluded.

“It should not now be held back for any other reason,” the Opposition said.

“Leaving it till later next week will take the publication so close to Christmas as to effectively be an attempt by the Government to bury this into the Christmas break.”

“Given that they have had it for six weeks already that would be outrageous and counterproductive to the public interest given the very serious issues that were at stake.”

“The holding back of the Report so that Mr Picardo could be available to respond from 5 December 2025 was no more than the GSLP Government acting in accordance with its own self-serving interests and not the public interest.”

“Was there no other Minister who was able to do an interview on the subject given that the Government of Gibraltar were core participants?”

The GSD said too it was “increasingly untenable” for the Government to resist disclosing the embargoed copy to the Leader of the Opposition “immediately”, especially given GBC and the Chronicle have had it for nearly two weeks.

“Hanging on to the Report for dear life can only be because they are so worried about its contents,” said the Leader of the Opposition, Keith Azopardi.

“By next Monday the GSLP Government will have had the report for nearly seven weeks and GBC and the Chronicle almost three weeks.”

“How is it reasonable to provide an embargoed copy to the main press for weeks but withhold it from the Opposition?”

“It is no more than naked party-political interest and the GSLP leadership and leadership contenders need to justify that.”

“This is a Government that is running scared from publication, still acting in a self-serving way and trying to massage all aspects of the presentation of the report.”

“The public will see through all that when the time comes.”