In his continuing column for the Olive Press, ex-Chronicle news editor Franciso Oliva muses on how the Rock can mend its fractured social fabric – and the flaws of the Gibraltar Police Authority.
ONE of the crystal clear conclusions that emerged from the oral evidence in the McGrail inquiry is the fundamentally deficient role played by the Gibraltar Police Authority in the whole affair, and the unsuitability of then-chairman Joseph Britto for the post.
Described by Nick Pyle as a man “of nervous disposition,” anyone tuning in to his testimony on TV would have been left in no doubt about the accuracy of the interim Governor’s comment.
On the back of this, searching questions should be asked regarding the selection and appointment methods for statutory boards, and other voluntary bodies in Gibraltar which impact on state functions.
The chairman of the Gibraltar Police Authority is a key position in the architecture of rule of law, in the constitutional checks and balances of democratic governance.
To be a nice and pleasant man as the consensus appears to be regarding Britto’s personal demeanour is not enough, it is never enough on its own for anything in fact, and even more so in a recruitment process of this nature, for a position that requires very specific attributes, where it should be something completely extraneous.
Unfortunately there is a long list of cases that contradict that basic judicious premise.
READ MORE: The McGrail Report – Toward a modernised model of policing for Gibraltar, writes F Oliva
THE UMBRELLA
A chairman requires a strong personality, sufficient character, and a developed sense of leadership in navigating the fault lines of the state.
Additionally he must possess profound knowledge and understanding of the vital underlying issues of his critical role, which is no less than guaranteeing the independence of the police force, warding off any interference from the political power or from the Governor.
The importance of the police in upholding the concept of rule of law without which democracy is meaningless, has to be grasped in all its magnitude.
A chairman cannot be naïve “these things just don’t happen in Gibraltar, I found it hard to believe”, or oblivious to the gravity of what was taking place, “I did not connect the dots at that time”, “it did not even dawn on me.”
He cannot buckle under pressure and never be intimidated in the presence of the Chief Minister or Governor, accepting everything they say without question; courteous by all means, but always firm in the defence of his constitutional role.
At least it is to be hoped that he will have subsequently experienced a private epiphany, that the things he thought could not happen in Gibraltar were happening in front of him; that you do not invite the Chief Minister – technically that could never be interference – to draft letters for you in the midst of a disciplinary process, or sign things that you do not even understand.
A person instinctively distrustful of police powers, as could be inferred from his own admission, would not reasonably appear to have the ideal type of profile as befits the post of chairman of the authority.
He surprisingly appeared more concerned about the balance being disturbed in the opposite direction, i.e. the prospect of police abusing their powers, which given the 2025 context is an unlikely, perhaps even exceptional proposition, than from protecting the police’s operational independence.
In his cross-examination the other Nick, the RGP lawyer at the inquiry Nick Cruz perfectly described the Gibraltar Police Authority as “the umbrella that works well until it rains.”
WHEN ALL HELL BREAKS LOOSE
It was the heated confrontation on May 12, 2020, between the Chief Minister and McGrail in the presence of the Attorney General, that triggered the succession of events when “all hell broke loose,” as news of the search warrant at Hassans trickled back to Convent Place.
The upshot of the much publicised showdown when Picardo recognised that tempers flared, and corroborated that the commissioner was “not a shrinking violet by any stretch of the imagination,” was a catastrophic breakdown in the relationship between them.
Furthermore, in a candid moment during his evidence, the Chief Minister conceded that he did not pretend to be perfect – is there anyone who is? – insisted that he had acted properly at all times and that his conscience was clear.
There was a point of inflection in his voice that suggested a note of disappointment, perhaps regret at how things had turned out and disappointment that McGrail had made no attempt to reach out to him or apologise.
This could have drastically changed the scenario, as it is plausible that Picardo would have embraced such a gesture to reset the relationship and move on.
They had worked well before over Covid and other matters, so such an expectation would not have been inconceivable by any means.
READ MORE: The McGrail report – Making sense of what we saw in ‘Gibraltar confidential’, writes F Oliva
He also declared that it was not good and is never good for the rule of law in Gibraltar, for him and the commissioner, in effect the two great guarantors of the rule of law, (and it cannot be emphasized enough) without which democracy is toast, to have been “at daggers drawn.”
Given the above, that arguably a door could have been left ajar for a reconciliation even in the worst moments, the absence of a competent, persuasive Police Authority chairman is all the more unfortunate.
Such a figure could have used his clout to get Picardo and McGrail to sit at a table in the same room with him, given the seriousness of the situation forcing them if necessary, to thrash out their differences in an open discussion, to mend the collapse in communications and not come out until the situation had been satisfactorily rectified for all sides.
It would have been good for both, good for Gibraltar and good for the taxpayer.
Unfortunately, the lack of a credible broker simply made the parties more entrenched, and the matter was calamitous for all and a new ‘Silk Road’ bonanza for defence lawyers.
INTERCESSIONARY MECHANISM
The Gibraltar Police Authority has to be drastically reformed with a professionalization of the position of chairman and the inclusion of provisions for an intercessionary mechanism to avoid a repetition of these type of conflicts.
It should be the first lesson to be learned from the experience Gibraltar has been put through.
Three things are indisputable: Picardo convened the inquiry to get to the bottom of the crisis, at a cost to the taxpayer of £8m, he took the decision that the NCIS contract should remain with Blands against the company where he had a tangential financial interest, and denied that Levy or anyone is off limits or above the law.
Whatever the communication or procedural mistakes, honest, accidental oversights, evasiveness or misunderstanding on the part of the former commissioner, it will be the inquiry judge Sir Peter Openshaw, who will determine the gravity of them and rule on the weighty points of law that have arisen during the course of proceedings.
Without prejudice to the final recommendations that we will all hear shortly, McGrail is an honourable man who has devoted his life to upholding the rule of law.
There are few enterprises as valuable, dignified and meritorious as that, even if no-one is indeed exempted from human error.
On the other hand in Picardo we have the Chief Minister who by the end of his tenure, putatively in 2027, will have attained the most for Gibraltar in the modern age, leaving a power vacuum behind him that will be impossible to fill perhaps for a decade.
He too is an honourable man, and it is equally for the judge to consider his evidence under oath that he acted properly at all times.
To borrow his terminology, he has been repelling crocodiles getting too close to the canoe and threatening Gibraltar’s existence since 2016, and has got the battle scars to show for it.
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