Reflections on the Chief Minister's Interview

It would be very easy to sit here and take a swipe at what the Chief Minister has said in his interview in the Chronic of 21st June 2011 but, perhaps, that would be to fall into the very trap that he accuses his opponents of falling into, criticism for the sake of it. Unfortunately one reality of adverserial politics is precisely that, criticism of one's opponents . The party in government will always be subjected to criticism by those wishing to get into government and vice versa. This is precisely one of the attributes that delivers democracy.

There is no doubting one thing: in 15 years the GSD Government has transformed Gibraltar. It is not my intention to be churlish but there is also no doubting that the  GSLP government did lay the foundations of much of what has evolved. Also, it is the result of the entrepreneurial skill that exists in the collective that is Gibraltar. In the fields of the finance centre and gaming the first burst of activity came during the GSLP's term of office. Co-ownership of affordable housing was pioneered by the GSLP administrtaion. The reclamation on which much has been built was undertaken by the GSLP government. Unfortunately the last years of the second term of the GSLP was a disaster. After all the good it had done, it allowed a culture of hooliganism arising from illicit tobacco activities (and other illicit acts camouflaged by tobacco) to develop. Gibraltar quite rightly was not prepared to tolerate this and did not do so.

One great ability of the GSD has been to grab the bull by the horns and immediately deal with the fundamental problem that Gibraltar was faced with at that time, reputation and image. It took a short while but as the Chief Minister says   " ...  a repositioning and salvaging of Gibraltar's international image and reputation [was achieved]...  an environment in which the Gibraltar economy could succeed with a high level of reputation [was created]..." All things need to be said, however, the truth is that these accomplishments essentially reinstated what are the fundamental morals and principles of society in Gibraltar. It has been accomplished because it is what the people wanted. Prior to the election of the GSD administration, the people came out onto the Main Street in their thousands and vociferously demonstrated against the destructive culture that developed at the latter end of the GSLP period in government. It was a perfect example of democracy at work. The success of the GSD has been to project this true image of Gibraltar abroad and generally.

Reputation and image are fragile and can easily fall apart in no time. Already the incidence of illicit tobacoo trade is evident and increasing. It may be less "in your face" and  more under cover. It may be  more controlled. However, it is there. The potential for that to be exploited against Gibraltar exists. It was the GSD who promised to rid Gibraltar of this activity. Is the revenue from this source so necessary to enable governments to keep manifesto promises to provide so many projects and benefits? If that is the case then our politicians have to think again, mitigate their promises that require excessive expenditure and agree to provide what Gibraltar is capable of affording without the revenue stream from tobacco. It is called living within one's means and one's means should not include revenue from illicit activity. It is an aspect of Gibraltar that needs careful thought and action.

Moving on to a new topic, I share the Chief Minister"s belief that a change of government for the sake of change is to be avoided. Change of this type is not something that I advocate. What I do advocate is that those who put themselves up for election should offer the electorate something positive, be it intangible or tangible. They should have manifestos that set out values and goals as well as specific policy aims. They should not harp on about the past successes. Those are in the bag already and such behaviour smacks of being bereft of new policies or ideas. Also they should not harp on about the past failings of other parties.

Democracy demands and requires a choice. It demands and requires that the electorate be given a real choice, not a choice between the best of two bad lots. That is not to be critical of all or any party offering itself for election, it is simply a reflection that an electorate tires of the same old faces. It gets tired of staleness and seeks innovation. The Chief Minister put it very well "  ... elections get harder to win the more you have under your belt. That is normal in a mature democracy." I believe this is actually a reflection of the centralisation of all focus on one person the Chief Minister, whoever he or she might be at any time. I maintain that this focus is, in part, due to the electoral and parliamenary system that exists in Gibraltar. In this regard I am glad that the Chief Minister has seen fit (and if all be said, has been big enough) to admit that " ... the 'third limb' ... parliamenary and electoral reform is something we did not pursue as enthusiastically during this term as we set out to do". I find this a reassuring statement. I believe, now, that this might well happen if the GSD government is elected for a fifth term. It will certainly not behove them well if it does not happen. What remains to be seen and judged is what the extent of these reforms will be.

Another matter on which I must also agree with the Chief Mnister (Cousin Robert agreeing rather often!) is that being Chief Minister is more than a full time job and requires enormous energy, commitment and dedication. There is no room for distractions. It is not within the realms of possibility that anyone faced with even giving evidence in court can or should contemplate taking on this office. In this the current Chief Minister's view is a correct view, when he says that " ... Gibraltar cannot afford a Chief Minister  ...  embroiled in court proceedings in one capacity or other as a witness, helping the authorities with their inquiries in the UK or Spain." Fabian owes it to democracy to openly and transparently reveal all and to what extent these issues might take up his time. Time which he will not be able to afford (but will have to make, to the detriment of his ability to be Chief Minister)  if his party is elected and forms government.

Gibraltar cannot afford to have an absent Chief Minister or one who is distracted or preoccupied with matters unrelated to his duties as Chief Minister for any length of time. Fabian also owes it to his party to be clear on any issue affecting his ability to dedicate the entirety of his time to the office of Chief Minister. It may be that Fabian's professional issues have other repercussions. One does not know. It seems that they can only complicate the argument against him being Chief Minister rather than in favour of his being so. The incumbent Chief Minister argues this issue on the basis of "judgment" or rather lack of it. This is a dangerous argument for an incumbet Chief Minister to rely on. Examples and criticisms of bad judgments and mistakes against anyone who is in government will always be more abundant than for those who have been in opposition. There are better arguments than this based on the circumstances faced by Fabian.

One issue on which I must disagree with the Chief Minister is his statement "It is generally known that one of the things that I attach importance to in my own political journey, is to ensure that the GSD has an orderly succession, so it does not suffer the fate of other political parties, where, it having been seen as the political vehicle of one individual, it then dies with the political career of that individual." This may be what he has had hidden in the recesses of his mind but it has only come into the public arena now. I would simply mention two names in reaction to this statement, Peter Montegriffo and Keith Azopardi. What is salutary is that he has now said this. I believe it is an important commitment. It is more important that it should come to be and actually happen. The process has to be seen to be happening and evolving. If it is seen to be happening the electoral chances of the GSD will be enhanced but part of the evidence is to see the existence of an actual party with a wide membership and party meetings.

All in all an interesting interview. One which gives some insight into various important considerations. One which, to a small degree, starts to demarcate the battleground for the next election. One that, however, does not include or contain any new ideas. The Chief Minister said "As a result of having been so ambitious, four year terms end and you just do not have time to do everything in your manifesto and then your political opponents ignore the 80% that you have done  ... and attack you on the 20% that you have not done, and perhaps if we had been less ambitious and instead of putting in 100 things, we had put in 80 things, we would have completed." This throws up two other problems for the GSD. First it has to be seen to be admitting not to have done things that it promised to do. Secondly it leaves very few new policies for inclusion in its next manifesto but only time will tell... anyway I will be a happier man if Gibraltar gets adequate and appropriate electoral and parliamentary reforms. These reforms will enhance the ability of people to participate in politics at a different level and will carry with it the benefit of throwing up potential candidates to hold the office of Chief Minister in the future.