Government Reaffirms Commitment to Fairness in Settling Claims Regardless of Political Affiliation

The Government wishes to remind the public that it receives and follows legal advice in all settlements reached with current or former employees or officers of public entities. These settlements are entered into in order 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. Their purpose is not political favouritism, but financial risk management.

The former Principal Auditor’s report highlights a single settlement involving an individual described as a GSLP supporter. It fails, however, to mention that the Government has also settled claims with individuals who are or were aligned with the GSD, including former Ministers. 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. This is entirely unacceptable and damaging to the fabric of our democracy.

The Chief Minister, the Hon Fabian Picardo KC MP, said:

"The former Principal Auditor's report is being weaponised against the Government in a manner that is worse than unfair. The public are being shown images of me with one of the hundreds of people we have settled claims with. That photograph exists because that one person is a GSLP supporter.
I am confident that I have acted properly in settling claims from people of all party political persuasion and none. 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.”

"As a result, however, of the sensationalist nature and language of the former Principal Auditor's biased and report, I am now the subject of death threats which I have today reported to the Royal Gibraltar Police.”

"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.”

ENDS