THE latest Brit to take up one of the Rock’s key public roles is ‘not part of a UK takeover of Gibraltar’, according to insiders with knowledge of the recruitment process.
The denial comes after an Englishman, Phil Sharman, was appointed as the new Principal Auditor, taking over from the retiring Tony Sacramento.
It follows on from news that Welshman Owain Richards will be Gibraltar’s next Commissioner of Police, with both expected to take up their respective roles one month apart.
But the appointments have set tongues a-wagging on the Rock that the appointment was part of a strategy by London to strengthen its grip on the territory’s administration that has been dogged by a series of scandals and irregularities.
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Political commentator and the retired barrister Robert Vasquez observed: “The UK is tightening its sway over the administration of Gibraltar by flexing its muscle and, through influence, appointing (so far) two constitutional officers from the UK.”
“It is a start toward good governance, as distinguished from political governance.”
However, sources have told us ‘this is not true at all.’
The Olive Press understands that it was never the original intention to recruit from the UK and initially a new principal auditor was sought within Gibraltar.
However, due to a lack of options at home, the search was expanded to abroad, with ‘Phil Sharman head and shoulders above the competition.’
Sharman has ‘extensive experience from working in other British Overseas Territories’ including the British Virgin Islands, where he was responsible for ‘promoting public accountability and providing assurance on the use of taxpayer funds.’
He also held similar posts in St Helena and the Turks & Caicos Islands – all jurisdictions coming under UK sovereignty.
Insiders are also hoping that Sharman will ‘help train up the new generation of local auditors from within Gibraltar.’
Whether he will have the time to tend to the new crop will be open to debate given the ‘Herculean task’ he faces, according to the GSD.
The last set of public accounts to be delivered, as recently as January this year, were for 2017 and 2018.
Former auditor and Shadow Minister for Public Finance Roy Clinton noted that ‘the public rightly reacted with horror at the wanton waste and abuse exposed in those reports.’
“Mr Sharman faces a Herculean task in completing the audits of the six years of outstanding Gibraltar government accounts.”
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The backlog in auditing the public accounts has long led to suspicions about what could be lurking within.
“We never did get to the bottom of why the accounts are so far behind,” one source added.
“It could be a question of under-resourcing the Public Auditor’s office, but people also need to cooperate in providing the data and materials for the auditors to do their jobs.
“If they’re getting slow-rolled then of course the auditors will never catch up.”
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