Tireless  was 'hours from meltdown'

  Five months after the Ministry of defence assured Gibraltarians that it was only a "minor defect", it has been revealed that HMS Tireless was close to disaster, its nuclear reactor "at the very point of failure."

  The Guardian has been told that the crack, far more serious than first thought, "is understood to be at a critical junction of pipes in the pressurised water reactor's cooling system which cannot be isolated."

  The navy now recognises it is not simply a question of wear and tear: it is a potentially catastrophic design fault.

  Under the headline "Nuclear sub was hours from meltdown", the paper adds that "the cracks could not be in a worse position."  Sources have said that "It is critical to safety."

  Naval engineers are said to have been astonished to discover the problem turned out to be so serious.  Equally alarmingly, navy sources say the splits in the pipes of the reactor's cooling system were discovered only because of new technology of which they had no previous experience.

  This latest news of the Tireless trauma has been making the headlines in many parts of the world, including Spain which has been leading with the story in its main news broadcasts. The whole episode is now certain to fuel even further the anti-Tireless campaign in Gibraltar, where a statement is expected from the Gibraltar government.  (28.10.00)

MAJOR ROW OVER BLAIR SUGGESTION  TO ALLOW SPAIN TO INSPECT SUBMARINE 

A major row has erupted over suggestions in Madrid yesterday by prime minister Tony Blair about allowing Spanish engineers to inspect the stricken nuclear submarine HMS Tireless, which is to be repaired in Gibraltar.

  With mounting concern in Spain about the safety issue, Blair made his suggestion to his Spanish counterpart Jose Maria Aznar.  But Britain's navy chiefs have expressed alarm that a foreign power should be allowed to poke its nose into a British submarine.

  "HMS Tireless is itself sovereign territory and is in a sovereign base," said the navy.

  Shadow defence secretary Iain Duncan Smith said: The Spanish have absolutely no right to complain and should accept the reassurances of a major ally."

  Spain itself is not a nuclear power, and there is general agreement that it is none of her business to interfere.

  In Gibraltar itself, the move is causing concern as it is felt that Spain is attempting to use the Tireless issue to develop the notion that the British base should come under joint Anglo-Spanish control.

  The Gibraltar government, which has not opposed the repairs on the grounds that they have been assured that they are safe, says it is "against any form of Spanish interference in the affairs of Gibraltar or the naval base."

  While there is no objection to a NATO ally being kept informed of developments, anything beyond that would be seen in Gibraltar as a major incursion by Spain in Gibraltar's internal affairs.(28.10.00)

TIRELESS OVERSHADOWS
MADRID TALKS

Talks in Madrid today between British prime minister Tony Blair and Spain's Jose Maria Aznar have been overshadowed by the ongoing controversy over the repairs to the stricken nuclear submarine HMS Tireless, which has been at Gibraltar since May after developing a leak on its coolant system. But both ministers played down the safety fears.

  Blair has proposed a joint group of experts to consider within a spirit of total transparency the situation the submarine is in. The group would decide if Spanish experts should be allowed into the submarine, in order to allay fears in the Spanish hinterland about the consequences that could derive from a nuclear accident so close to their homes.

  Aznar was told that the repairs are taking place with the nuclear reactor switched off, thus reducing the prospect of a serious development.

  Aznar said the experts will prepare a report next week. He said that the works should last until about next March.

Time and again Blair said Spanish concerns were fully understood, but full details of the repairs would be made available.

Reports suggest that Blair has convinced Aznar about the greater dangers of towing the submarine back to Britain for repairs. "You cannot get hold of the submarine and tow it through the Atlantic in any fashion," said Aznar.

  A spokesman at the British Embassy in Madrid said today:"We have over the last two weeks explained to the Spanish authorities that, after the initial finding on the Tireless, there was more extensive damage to the circulation system outside the reactor."

  The British are giving assurances that the vessel is safe and there is no risk to Gibraltar or the people of southern Spain.

  Aznar even cracked a joke, saying that it was a more serious matter than singing that evergreen song about the 'Yellow Submarine.'

  The seven mayors of the Campo area have also been to Madrid to put pressure on the authorities to have the submarine sent back to Britain, but their mission has not been successful.  Both Britain and Spain see no reason why the submarine cannot remain at Gibraltar for repairs. (27.10.00)

Blair's "flip flop" attitude to Gibraltar, says group

Prior to today's meeting in Madrid between prime minister Tony Blair and his Spanish opposite number Jose Maria Aznar,
the Voice of Gibraltar group delivered a letter to the governor, David Durie, for onward transmission to Mr Blair which says that "Britain's dismissive and flip flop attitude towards Gibraltar runs in deep contradistinction to your government's speedy readiness to dump the defective nuclear submarine Tireless on our laps."
Gibraltar is now accustomed to periodic statements from successive British governments claiming to be "monitoring" Spain's continuing onslaught against the people of Gibraltar, they add.
The group says the people here have now come to expect a weak stance by the British government in defence of our inalienable right to determine our future, and yet find it odd that Britain has been so quick to advocate human rights internationally.
Your government, they tell Blair, has proved itself bankrupt when called upon to defend the legitimate rights of our people.
The Voice of Gibraltar ask that Blair demands from Spain in the clearest of terms the respect of Gibraltar's rights. "We now expect from you a proactive, pro-Gibraltarian approach in your talks with your good colleague Mr Aznar. We will accept nothing short of that." (27.10.00)

Confusion over driving licences

Following the fining of a Gibraltar coach driver by Spanish traffic police, "the Gibraltar government must state publicly what the legal position is of drivers using GBZ driving licences in Spain," said an opposition statement today.
When the driver in question produced the Gibraltar licence to the police, he was told the licence was not valid.
Gibraltar drivers are acting in accordance with what they are told in Gibraltar "and are therefore entitled to expect that they will not be treated as acting illegally at the whim of some official on the other side," declared Juan Carlos Perez, opposition spokesman for traffic. "The imposition of on-the-spot fines is tantamount to highway robbery."
The opposition ask the local government to state clearly what is the legal position. (27.10.00)

Government "astonished" by taxi trade stance

The government said this evening that it is astonished, but not surprised, at the latest statements by the taxi association to the effect that they would place their own interests above Gibraltar's interests and that they are willing to pay the price of P&O pulling out of Gibraltar.
The government say that the controversial transport regulations, which the taximen see as curtailing their civil rights, are "intended to protect Gibraltar from 'wildcat' and unlawful action which would put our future in cruising at risk." (27.10.00)

Statement

Israeli-led 'mini Silicon Valley' for Gibraltar

by Joe Garcia 

An Israeli-led group are to invest 78 million US dollars in a major data centre at Gibraltar that they hope will become a "mini Silicon Valley". It is expected to be fully operational by the end of next year, "putting Gibraltar on the internet map," said chief executive officer Joseph Adir in Gibraltar today.
Gibraltar-registered qualifying company Ecom Limited, described as a specialist in complex web-hosting facilities, will build "one of the world's most secure and robust hosting infrastructures" in a disused military area known as Lathbury Barracks.
Ecom holds a teleport facility licence and recently announced the forging of a strategic alliance with Computer Associates International Inc of New York, a leading business solutions provider, who becomes the main partner.
Ecom has assembled "a set of strategic partnerships with the world's top corporations in the different market segments used for the engineering of its platforms'" said a statement by the Gibraltar government, which has entered into a memorandum of understanding with the company.
The government statement adds that Ecom's " network will be built utilising ecom's own infrastructure and communications expertise, Computer Associates' management solution (Unicenter TNG) and industry-leading security product suite (eTrust), as well as Sun Microsystems servers."
The data centre will be built on land leased from the Gibraltar government, which has also offered the company a special concessionary package which includes tax incentives, and a waiver of import duties for the equipment, which will include up to 10,000 servers.
Once all the necessary permits have been obtained, work on site will commence immediately. Old buildings will have to be demolished, and hopefully by the third quarter of next year, the new data centre will be open for testing, becoming fully operational by the end of the year.
The web-hosting facility will employ about 75 IT specialists backed by around 25 administrative and maintenance staff. Targeting the top end of the market, the company is hopeful of attracting between 500 and 700 large companies. It is not a set-up for small start-up operations.
eBusiness transactions, especially of a business-to-business (b2b) nature, are expected to grow substantially over the next 3 to 5 years, said a Government statement here, adding that the web-hosting business, currently worth about £2 billion a year, is expected to grow to about £10 billion by 2003.
"I am very pleased that we have successfully concluded our discussions with Ecom and that they will be setting up a major web-hosting network in Gibraltar," said trade, industry and telecommunications minister Keith Azopardi. The government is very eager to capture a slice of this market, one of a number of specialist telecommunications and ebusiness areas where the government hopes to attract new investment to Gibraltar.
Mr Adir, who together with a group of Israelis founded Ecom, said that the idea of headquartering the business in Gibraltar developed a year ago. It will now headquarter its pan-European operation on the Rock "on account of its well-regulated environment and international repute as a business centre," he said, and added: It is our intention to not only increase the flow of business done through Gibraltar but also to enhance the Rock's overall financial stature by locating a world-class cyber facility here. (26.10.00)

New twist to Tireless saga

The mayor of the neighbouring Spanish town of Algeciras, Patricio Gonzalez, arrived in Gibraltar today waving a piece of paper. This was a complaint against the presence of Tireless in Gibraltar which, he contends, contravenes international regulations. He went to the court building and to the police station in an effort to file his complaint, followed by a strong Spanish press corp.
Meanwhile, the Spanish foreign ministry says it wants greater transparency from the British government regarding the repair work of the stricken nuclear submarine, adding that the British government is supplying insufficient information.
For its part, the Gibraltar opposition said in a statement this afternoon that with the revelation that the fault is more serious than at first thought, the Ministry of Defence has failed to allay public concern. They support the demands by non-governmental bodies that Tireless must leave the Rock. (26.10.00)

British and Spanish premiers to talk about Tireless

The British prime minister Tony Blair and his Spanish counterpart Jose Maria Aznar are expected to discuss the Tireless crisis when they meet in Madrid on Friday. While the issue is not formally on the agenda, Gibraltar always looms at such talks - and on this occasion there is the specific issue of the stricken submarine and the controversy that has now been re-ignited.
The withdrawal of the entire fleet of hunter-killer submarines, for fear that they might have faults similar to those encountered in HMS Tireless, has caused renewed concern in both Gibraltar and the Spanish hinterland.
The seven mayors of the Spanish Campo area have given their government 24 hours to decide on Tireless, and are threatening to stage demonstrations in Madrid, at the offices of their prime minister and at the British Embassy to coincide with Mr Blair's visit.
Blair's visit is to do with bilateral and European issues, but all indications are that their talks will spill over into the Tireless crisis.
The nuclear submarine has been in Gibraltar since last May when it arrived with a leak in its coolant system. Last week, the Ministry of defence confirmed that the fault was more serious than at first thought. 
Meanwhile, emergency management expert Joe Bishop says that the local safety plan to counter a nuclear accident is badly flawed. He complains also of a lack of information and awareness. In a serious accident, where would the affected population be sheltered - and how would contamination/medical issues be addressed, as this is not properly specified in the current plan. (25.10.00)

Concern about tobacco smuggling to UK

The Gibraltar authorities are becoming increasingly concerned about the increase in tobacco smuggling from Gibraltar to the UK. 
People have been coming out from Britain as if they were tourists and taking back large amounts of cigarettes, for re-sale in the UK. Some have been caught with suitcases laden with the tobacco.
Customs here say that such traffic is becoming commonplace.
In a recent case, the manager of a shop in the main street was fined £3,000 in court for selling a total of 60,000 cigarettes to two UK nationals.
It is an offence in Gibraltar to retail over 2,000 cigarettes to any one person at any given time. It is a breach of a condition in the retail licence for the sale of cigarettes.
In the case in question, customs officers kept surveillance on the premises to secure evidence to take the shop manager to court.(25.10.00)

Cruise liner 'pull out' threat

The British P&O cruise liner company is threatening to pull out of Gibraltar if a halt is not put to a taxi dispute which is affecting passengers arriving in Gibraltar on its cruise ships.
The tourism department here has received a letter from the company expressing serious concern at the strike action taken by the taxi drivers, who stage demonstrations at the quayside and remove their shuttle service to town, except for the infirm and the elderly.
There are about 20 calls from P&O ships per annum. The local agent is saying that the threats from the company should be taken seriously.
The taxi drivers have been distributing leaflets claiming that their prices are cheaper than those charged to passengers onboard by the ship. The company rejects any notion of the taxi representatives being allowed on board to sell their own tours to passengers.
The Gibraltar Taxi Association is engaged in a bitter dispute with the Gibraltar government over plans to introduce certain transport regulations which the taximen say affect their civil rights and give the Government-appointed transport commission, chaired by a minister, the power to decide what is unlawful. The association says that only a court of law should determine what is unlawful and what is not.
At a meeting of the Gibraltar house of assembly, and at a previous meeting earlier this month, placard-carrying taxi drivers heckled the chief minister and the transport minister as they went into the building. (25.10.00)

Taxi Association Statement

Gibraltar travel trade training in London

The Gibraltar tourist board in London is this week commencing its travel trade training schedule, following the refurbishment of its offices.
A total of 18 conference buyers and twenty travel agents will attend in-house training sessions over two evening programmes.
The training programmes are the first in a series that will be held throughout the year. The London office website incorporates a travel trade section which will be further developed as a recent poll has revealed that 70% of travel agents accessed the internet for destination information.
"Training will take the format of a destination presentation followed by a question and answer session," said a government statement today. Agents will be tested on the knowledge they have gathered through the evening.
This new activity is placed alongside sales calls, roadshows, site inspection visits and exhibition attendance. (25.10.00)

 

Spanish demonstrators plan 'surprise' anti-Tireless act

Spanish groups on the other side of the Gibraltar frontier are suggesting that they plan to spring a "surprise" act, akin to Greenpeace stunts, against the British nuclear submarine HMS Tireless, which is berthed in Gibraltar in the midst of an ongoing controversy as to whether or not it should be repaired here. The Spaniards fear that, should anything go seriously wrong, they, too, would be affected, given the nearness of the Spanish border town of La linea to Gibraltar.
Several well-attended demonstrations have already taken place in nearby Spain against the Tireless, but tension has risen following the recall by Britain of the entire hunter-killer submarine fleet, fearing Tireless-like faults on the nuclear reactor system.
A panel of three UK nuclear experts, hired by the Gibraltar Government, have been to Gibraltar to be assessed by the Ministry of defence on the state of repair of Tireless. They will be reporting back to the Gibraltar Government, which has not opposed the repairs on the grounds that it has been assured they are safe. 
However, concern is growing at the disclosure that the 2mm crack on a weld in the coolant system is now said to be bigger, with other reports suggesting that there could be something more seriously wrong in the submarine. A pressure group here insists that it has information that the submarine's hull is damaged. 
The Tireless had to withdraw from a round-the-world tour when it developed a leak in its coolant system whilst in the Mediterranean last May. (24.10.00)

Our stance on Tireless vindicated, says pressure group

The Voice of Gibraltar group, which has taken a frontline position against HMS Tireless being repaired in Gibraltar, say that its stance has been vindicated. It follows the admission by the Ministry of defence that the fault in the nuclear compartment of the submarine is more serious than at first thought.
In a statement today, the group says: "The British government has put its own selfish interests upfront. We recall with contempt minister Spellar's blatant threats to the people of Gibraltar when we dared raise our voice against the presence of Tireless in Gibraltar."
Now, with the recall of the entire Trafalgar and Swiftsure class of nuclear submarines, "we are constitutionally and morally entitled to raise and condemn Britain's cynicism in thrusting Tireless on our laps," says the group.
The group calls on the Gibraltar government and other elected representatives to extract from Britain a clear plan of action as to how it proposes to deal with the Tireless issue which has now become Gibraltar's problem. It wants to hear of constructive proposals "to rid Gibraltar of this threat as soon as possible", and of what steps are being taken to update the local safety plan to counter a nuclear accident.
While the Foreign Office see Gibraltar as merely an appendage at the end of the Iberian peninsula "to be used, misused and abused, this small patch of land is our homeland," says the strongly-worded statement from the group. (24.10.00)

Row over radiologist will not go away

The row over the dismissed consultant radiologist Dr P. M. Rassa refuses to go away, and within the last 24 hours two long statements have been made, one by the Government and another by the Opposition.
Health minister Dr Linares says that the radiologist has made "blanket general accusations of negligence and malpractice against fellow consultants but, as yet, has not presented any specific evidence to substantiate his accusations. Should he do so, I have repeatedly stated that they will be fully investigated and I would not discard the possibility of an independent enquiry should the evidence presented merit such an approach."
The minister adds: It is not true to suggest that Dr Rassa has been dismissed simply because he spoke out to air criticism.
The opposition, for its part, says today that it "does not consider it appropriate for the health minister Dr Bernard Linares to be involved in any way in any investigation relating to the allegations made public by Dr Rassa."

The labour/liberal opposition consider that the proper way to proceed is to set up an independent enquiry and for any evidence available to be presented to the enquiry and not to the minister. Asking Dr Rassa to submit more evidence to the person that is publicly defending his dismissal, "does not seem to be an appropriate way of dealing with this matter to the satisfaction of the public," says the opposition. (24.10.00)

 

  Harbour Views litigation settled

  The litigation in relation to the remedial works at Harbour Views has been settled, said a Government statement tonight. Agroman(Gibraltar) Ltd, the builders of the estate, and its parent company Ferrovial Agroman SA, have agreed to pay a total of £24,360,703 in settlement of the claim.

  The settlement includes £1.5 million as a fund to settle the claim of individual homeowners for personal damages. £15,860,703 of the settlement sum will be paid immediately in cash, the balance of £8.5 million as the repairs proceed, by quarterly instalments, fully secured by a first class bank in London.

  "This is a very good settlement," said the chief minister.

  The Government has so far funded the execution of the ongoing repair work at considerable public expense. It is estimated that expenses in legal fees and consultants fees alone will reach £6 million. "The settlement means that the total exposure of public funds to the final repair and related costs will amount to a small proportion of the total," said Mr Caruana.

  The statement adds that "the settlement vindicates the Government's decision to underwrite the cost of the repairs and the litigation.  If Government had not done so, it would not have been possible to resolve this very serious problem affecting a large sector of the community and it would not have been possible to bring the contractors to this settlement."

  This has been a complex piece of legislation involving arbitration and High Court proceedings in London, and litigation in the courts in Madrid, all of which has now ended.

  Describing this as an unacceptable episode in the construction history of Gibraltar, the chief minister said: "The Government remains committed to introducing legislation to ensure that what has happened at Harbour Views, and other similar but lesser examples of it, do not occur again." (23.10.00)

Hole 10 times bigger than thought

The seriousness of the fault in the nuclear reactor system in HMS Tireless is such that the entire fleet of hunter-killer submarines has been recalled.
What the Commander British Forces, Commodore Willmett, used to describe as a “minor plumbing job” has turned out to be false, while assurances by the MOD that it was just a “2mm crack” have been shown to have been based on fancy and not fact.
Armed forces minister John Spellar said: We are now talking of cracks of a few centimetres.
How many cracks? Another paper quotes him as saying that cracks which had been thought to be of a few millimetres long were in fact 10 times as big.
“Some experts believe these fissures are a sign of deeper problems” said another UK report.
John Large, one of the Gibraltar government’s experts, spoke of the seriousness of the situation and added: “This type of defect should have been detected some time ago if the monitoring programmes were right.”
The question being asked is what else has not been detected?
The Government’s safety plan has been based on flawed information supplied by the MOD, so everything else must be equally flawed.
“We cannot continue to be told that all is safe when an entire submarine fleet, vital for the UK’s defence, has been withdrawn as a result of what has been discovered in Tireless,” said an anti-Tireless campaigner.
Opposition and other circles were insisting that the Gibraltar government had shown “infantile over-reliance” on the experts reports which were based on incorrect information. “Gibraltar is not an ideal place to repair nuclear submarines because it is a small, densely populated place,” they said. “If something goes seriously wrong, we could all be affected.”
The Government itself was arguing at the weekend that the safety plans are not affected.

Catalogue of fancy talk

Gibraltar has been forced into an adventure with nuclear reactors that go wrong - and with assurances which later founder on the rocks.
*The initial impression was that the Tireless was coming to Gibraltar to be prepared for towing back to a specialist yard in Britain. Later, the MOD said it would be repaired here.
*A reason given why it could not go back to Britain was that the X berths there were busy. There was no room for one more submarine. Now, there is, for as many submarines as you like!
*The MOD insisted that it was a 2mm crack. Now, it is not a 2mm crack.
*In an attempt to play down the seriousness of the situation, Gibraltar was told that it was “a small plumbing job”. Now, it has turned out to be something else.
What next?

Catastrophic

“According to John Large, who has been advising the authorities in Gibraltar on the safety implications of HMS Tireless’s problems, the risk the problem poses on a shut down reactor is negligible. But on vessels as sea it could trigger a “catastrophic failure” in the reactor followed by a radioactive leak, “ - BBC.

Over 80% want hospital allegations investigated

As many as 86% of respondents in an opinion survey say that the allegations about the hospital should be investigated.
The survey was carried out in PANORAMA’s daily edition on the Internet over the last week.
The question was ‘ should the allegations made by the Consultant Radiologist about the hospital be investigated?
86% said Yes, 11% said No and 2% said Don’t Know.
The survey has been on screen throughout the week. A new survey, about Tireless, is now on www.panorama.gi - Gibraltar’s daily paper on the Internet.

Last weeks News Stories

European Social Funding for Gibraltar

Gibraltar's allocation of European Social funding, at about 650,000 pounds a year, has now been confirmed. It is primarily meant for the development of training packages targeted at specific needs.
The five priority areas are to develop active labour market policies, promote social inclusion and equal opportunities, develop education and training systems as part of a lifelong learning policy, improve systems to create a skilled, trained and adaptable workforce and to improve the position of women in the labour market and reduce labour market segregation by gender.
'The way the new programme is structured will allow Government to work with the private sector to target the training needs of Gibraltar's employment market,' said minister Keith Azopardi. (20.10.00)

Liberal Party for Canada conference

The leader of the Liberal Party Dr Joseph Garcia and secretary general Steven Linares leave for Ottawa this weekend to participate in the 50th congress of Liberal international.
Keynote speakers for the event are the prime minister of Canada, Andorra, Belgium and the president of Malawi. Other speakers include Charles Kennedy of the British Liberal democrats.
The Gibraltar delegates will participate in the think tank seminar on "Federalism and Minority Protection" and "Enforcing Human Rights".
(20.10.00)

Statement

No confidence in health department, say opposition

In a statement today the labour/liberal opposition say that the alleged incident involving the removal of x-rays from the health department, which has led to a police investigation, has further undermined confidence in the way the health authority is run.
The opposition say that it understands that the police was called after evidence was found that a lock was forced coupled with the suspicion that two files were missing, concerning a patient who had exposed that with the help of dismissed consultant radiologist Dr Rassa a 15cm surgical wire found was found in his leg 14 years after an operation.
The opposition accuse health minister Dr Linares of having mishandled the situation, undermining public confidence in the health service. (20.10.00)

Statement

History conference starts today

A conference on the history of Gibraltar and the Campo area started today. It is organised by the Spanish "instituto de estudios campo-gibraltarenos" and is sponsored by the Gibraltar government.
There will be 32 presentations, just over half of which will deal with Gibraltar. 
A core of papers will be presented by the Gibraltar museum and other institutions in Spain. Gibraltar's bilinguism, Moorish Gibraltar and rivers of the area are among the papers being presented. (20.10.00)

Royal Bank of Scotland to target British expats in Spain and Portugal

The Gibraltar branch of the Royal Bank of Scotland is to "postbox" its services into Spain and Portugal. It follows the recent agreement whereby Gibraltar banks wanting to passport their services to the rest of the European Union could do so through a system known as "postboxing", whereby their applications would be channeled by a London "postbox" to avoid objections from Spain in dealing direct with the Rock.
The bank has now gone through the form-filling exercise which "took longer than it should have done", said a bank official. But it was a matter of weeks and not months.
They are the first Gibraltar-based bank to forage into Spain and Portugal. The first requirement was to translate the forms into Spanish and Portuguese. The financial services commission will do the rest.
The current aim of the bank will be to target expatriates living in nearby Andalucia, in Southern Spain, who like to have a bank account on British soil. They will also be lending for property purchases in Spain - and hopefully take it from there as they widen the range of services available.
Once this initial plan is out of the way, the bank intends to target other areas of the Iberian peninsula. The large British expatriate population in the Algarve in southern Portugal is another obvious choice.
The bank is not going to open branches outside Gibraltar, but instead make use of office facilities at their partner bank - the Banco Santander . 
The scheme will "give us access to a far bigger market," said bank manager Kerry Blight. (19.10.00)

Opposition accuse Linares of "artistic censorship"

The removal of an exhibit for political reasons, at the Gibraltar international art exhibition this week, has been described by the labour/liberal opposition as "artistic censorship" by education/culture minister Dr Bernard Linares, who had the painting removed at his request.
The exhibit in question was by a Spanish artist and was entitled "The future of Gibraltar". It showed a mangled car. While the opposition agree that the painting is offensive, it adds nevertheless that "the exhibition is about artistic not political values and it is inconsistent with the role of the minister to exercise censorship in this manner."
The opposition adds: "Moreover, if Dr Linares wants to boast about GSD policy of inviting people from Spain to participate in an exhibition in Gibraltar, what he cannot then do is censor an exhibit if he does not like it."
It has also been revealed that , at a local school, control was recently exercised over the paintings the students could have on display, which caused much resentment.
"It is a matter of serious concern to the Opposition that the GSD government continue to behave in an intolerable and high-handed manner. The government seems to think that they are the only ones who are entitled to hold an opinion and be able to freely express it, and those who do not conform are either censored, sacked or risk being personally discredited and abused for holding a different point of view," said an opposition statement today. (19.10.00)

Police act on hospital missing files

Files containing x-rays are said to have disappeared from St Bernard's Hospital. The police are investigating, as the missing files appear to follow a break-in. (19.10.00)
 

Row over Dr Rassa continues

The row over the dismissal of the consultant radiologist Dr P.M. Rassa continues , with general practitioners in the health service now having come out in support of the radiologist,  saying that he has had an "impeccable" career in London before coming here and describing the services he has been providing as "excellent."
In another development, the labour/liberal opposition said this afternoon that serious issues have been raised and that it is significant that Dr Linares, the health minister, has not explained why the radiologist was dismissed before a public inquiry had taken place into "the very serious allegations" made concerning the Gibraltar Health Authority.
Dr Linares "must explain to the electorate why he comes across as being afraid to hold a public inquiry", said the opposition, saying that his attitude serves only to cause greater public concern and that the hasty internal arrangements "smack of a cover-up." The Government have shown they are not interested in finding the truth, they add. (12.10.00)

Container transshipment bid announced

Credit Agricole Indosuez have been appointed as the transaction advisers for the multi-pound container transshipment project at the port. The aim is to establish if there is a market for such business in Gibraltar, where best to locate the facility and what cost would be involved.
Shipping and the port would receive a boost from a maritime studies centre which is being planned.
Plans to enhance port facilities are also on the cards, following a statement by port minister Joe Holliday, who has also confirmed that a licensing system for all port operators is to be introduced. (18.10.00)

Controversial opening to art exhibition

Controversy raged at the opening of this year's international art exhibition, with a painting by Spaniard Jose Pereiro Lozano being withdrawn as it was deemed to be politically offensive. The painting resembled a crushed car and was headed 'Gibraltar's future'.
A total of 217 artworks, both paintings and sculptures, were submitted from Gibraltar, the UK, Spain and Morocco. A total of 116 were selected for the exhibition which remains open until 2 November.
The main prize of 3000 pounds went to Hector Carnero with his sculpture 'Mujer'. Mario Finlayson, Sylvain Marc,and Francisco Alejandro Macias Cuevas won the other main prizes. (18.10.00)

Spain recognises Gibraltar as "nation"

Special Olympics Gibraltar say that, for the first time ever, "Gibraltar was officially recognised as a nation by Spain", following participation in Spain's special Olympics games last week.
The Gibraltar team paraded in both the opening and closing ceremonies with a 'Gibraltar' banner in front. Other nations which took part were Andorra, Belgium, France, Greece, Hungary, San Marino and the UK. The games were officially closed by the wife of the president of Catalunya.
In the swimming events, Glen Wimbledon won two gold medals and a silver medal went to Stephen Poggio. Another two gold medals were won by Nicolas Llanelo in the soft-ball throw, also coming first in the 50-metre sprint. Darren Vinet won silver in the 100-metre sprint and won bronze in the long jump event.
Juan Antonio Samaranch, president of the International Olympic Committee, congratulated all the Spanish regional squads and thanked the guest nations. (18.10.00)

More taxi action

The Gibraltar taxi association, locked in dispute with the Government, today resumed selective strike action. They were out, with placards, as a cruise liner docked at Gibraltar.
The taxi drivers are against a new Transport Regulation which they say affects their civil rights and empowers the Government-appointed transport committee, and not the law courts, to decide what is unlawful, a condition which could lead to their licences being revoked.
In today's action, they also staged a demonstration outside the chief minister's office. (18.10.00)

Caruana: Willing to serve forever

"I am willing to serve for ever if that is what the people want," chief minister Peter Caruana told the Financial Times, in a Gibraltar supplement published today. His profile is headed A 'saviour' willing to serve for ever.
An article is headed 'Rock rises to new challenges', another reads "Bingo! The Rock hits a winner".
On track towards a higher profile is another piece, while tourism is seen as having "growing potential to scale new heights of prosperity". The airport is under-utilised.
An untimely headline, about the stricken nuclear submarine HMS Tireless, suggests that "Controversial issue begins to cool down", when in fact the opposite is the case, now that the Ministry of defence has admitted that repairs are more serious than anticipated and that a more complicated process will have to be followed. This has led to the MOD being accused of being "callous" and the Gibraltar Government is being asked to withdraw its support for the repair. (18.10.00)

 

UK tax break could affect Gibraltar betting

An expected reduction in the UK's betting tax could adversely affect the growing Gibraltar betting industry. A statement is due in Chancellor Gordon Brown's pre-Budget statement at the end of the month.
With British betting experiencing a downtrend, the Chancellor is committed to doing something about it, in an attempt to reverse the trend.
In the last three years, Gibraltar has seen impressive growth in the offshore betting industry, which now provides over 500 jobs. And the number of bookies on the Rock could increase if the Government lifted its selective policy which has already resulted in ten formal applications being refused.
"The government's policy is to limit the number of gaming licences generally, and to favourably consider applications only from reputable and experienced operators who have been licensed in other countries and who have a proven track record backed by sufficient financial resources and expertise," says the chief minister Peter Caruana.
UK betting turnover has fallen by one percent since March 31 when it was expected to rise by two per cent, says the Daily Mail, which adds that there are indications from Customs and Excise that changes are imminent to counteract the increasing flow of betting to low tax regimes overseas, of which Gibraltar is one.
Ladbroke has 60,000 UK-based telephone clients in Gibraltar, each paying three per cent 'tax'. Victor Chandler is the largest offshore operator here, out of a total of nine.
The upsurge in betting now makes a valuable contribution to the Gibraltar economy, which cannot really afford any large exodus from current operators. However, having set up here, it is thought that a competitive reduction in UK betting tax would be needed before anyone would start to seriously think in making a move. (17.10.00)

Repairs to Tireless more serious than expected

There is growing concern here at reports that the planned repairs to the stricken nuclear submarine HMS Tireless are now thought to be more serious than at first thought, with the Ministry of Defence admitting that a more complicated process may have to be used which would cause delays to the repair programme.
The MOD were saying only last week that preparatory work had been completed and that photographic evidence had been sent to the UK for further study.
The MOD and their civilian contractors (Rolls Royce Marine Power Ltd) had originally concluded that the leak in the coolant system was due to a small crack (2mm wide) in a weld. However, it is now being admitted that further study is required to determine the exact location and size of the crack.
A panel of nuclear experts hired by the Gibraltar government had identified a small possibility that the MOD may have misdiagnosed the location of the crack to be repaired.
The release of the confidential report is causing more concern than reassuring people. "It exposes many real worries," said a spokesman for a group of concerned parents. (17.10.00)

Statement

Gibraltar tax application approved by USA

An application about new withholding tax procedures on investment in US securities, made by Gibraltar, has been approved by the Internal Revenue Service of the United States.
The decision has now been taken to add Gibraltar to the list of jurisdictions whose "Know Your Customer" Rules have been approved under the IRS new regime for withholding tax on US investments.
"By obtaining this approval for its anti-money laundering procedures, Gibraltar joins a select band of jurisdictions whose financial institutions are able to apply for Qualified Intermediary status under the new US regime," said a Gibraltar government spokesman.
These new procedures will place heavy administrative and reporting requirements on banks and other intermediaries dealing in US securities.
The Gibraltar government, the bankers association and the financial services commission have worked closely over the last few months in preparing the appropriate documentation for submission to the USA.
The new tax procedures become effective next January. The list of approved jurisdictions currently numbers 22 and includes major European finance centres.
The fact that the IRS has approved Gibraltar's know-your-customer rules, after very vigorous vetting, is further proof of the quality and robustness of the anti-money laundering measures we have in Gibraltar and of the commitment in Gibraltar to maintain our jurisdiction in the leading pack of international finance centres, said Iain Currie, president of the Gibraltar bankers association. (17.10.00) 

Linares accuses Linares of double standards

Opposition member Steven Linares has accused education minister Dr Bernard Linares of double standards with regard to the release of information.
The opposition refer to a report on Special Education Needs (SEN). When asked about it in the House of Assembly last march, Dr Linares said that "the audit report on Special Education Needs is already in the public domain."
When Steven Linares asked the department for a copy he was told he would have to write a letter to the minister, which the opposition thought was odd as the minister had said the report was in the public domain.
Last month Mr Linares again asked the government about what steps had to be taken to obtain a copy. Ask and it will be given to you, came the reply from the other Linares.
Finally, the report was forthcoming - but not without a covering letter saying it was confidential and not for public consumption!
Said an opposition statement today: "The opposition regrets the fact that the government has shown double-standards with regard to the release of information." (17.10.00)
 

‘Very disturbing, says opposition’

The events surrounding the dismissal of consultant radiologist Dr Rassa have been described as "very disturbing" by the opposition.
"It is very disturbing that in the midst of the accusations made by Dr Rassa that the Government should have terminated his contract of employment," said opposition health spokesperson Mari Montegriffo today. "But it is not enough for Dr Linares to reassure that there is nothing to worry about."
She adds: "If it is true, as he says, that he does not tolerate cover-ups then he should have nothing to fear of an independent inquiry."
The opposition adds that, meanwhile, confidence has been undermined in the health service "and the only way to restore it is by clearing this matter up to the full satisfaction of the public."
Dr Rassa complains that he has been making allegations which the health service has not addressed. He finally decided that he had had enough and put conditions for his continuing work, which the Government has seen as "a serious neglect and abandonment of your duties," as the letter terminating his contract states.
. While recognising that he has made "very serious, unsubstantiated allegations", the Government adds that this is breach of contract. "This behaviour is totally unacceptable," he was told.
However, Dr Rassa reiterates the allegations made, and in an article in PANORAMA today, refers to a letter where they were made and which, for obvious reasons, he cannot disclose in a newspaper article.
He asks Dr Linares to "open your eyes" and to listen to what is being said. Dr Rassa insists there has been "mismanagement and negligence", and he is prepared to go to a court of law to prove what he says.(16.10.00)

Press release

Open your eyes, minister!

Minister, open your eyes! Read the letters which are sent to you, listen to the people and try to understand what they are saying before making a public statement. Do not undermine your integrity by false information which is given to you by those people who have no motivation, other than their endless financial greed and thirst for power.
On 6th September 2000 I wrote to the Chief Executive, with copy to hospital consultants, general practitioners... and the Dr B Linares, Minister for Health and Education, whom I believe it is you!
Amongst several items that I advised was paragraph (c), which reads: "To organise the clinical audit in order to improve performances of the hospital doctors and provide more efficient and better services for the community. This, no doubt, will have a tremendous impact in avoiding the mistake and the mismanagement that I have pointed out to you on several occasions."
In the reply, which was signed by the Medical Director and the Chief Executive, they said that "the only point in your letter that merits an answer is the first one that you make” which is about the content of my contract.
Following your recent television interview I would like to remind you that it is the duty of every medical practitioner who is registered with the General Medical Council to report any unprofessional conduct, mental instability, drug abuse, wrong treatment etc. by another practitioner, to the Health Authority. I have done so in my letter of 7th February 2000 to the doctor who had that particular patient under his care, after verbal report to the Chief Executive for his advice, particularly in the light of the so-called 'Bristol Event' involving the cardiac surgeon, the disgraced gynaecologist, the surgeon removing the wrong kidney, Shipton's murder cases etc.
On the same subject I wrote to Mr Lima and I personally sent a copy of that letter, with my compliments, to you.
In that letter I made accusations for mismanagement, misconduct and negligence and I will prove it in the court of Law.
“As I have stated in my letter which for obvious reasons I cannot disclose in this article, if the way that patient was dealt with was not mismanagement and negligence, what is? This is not even Euthanasia, this is... I leave it up to your own judgment.
“Having worked as a Consultant radiologist in one of the most famous centres for cancer diagnosis and treatment in London for more than 20 years it is a pity that so-called.... here is not willing to take advantage of my presence in Gibraltar, and treat the patient in a way that if a patient suffers from cancer nothing can be done and that is the end of his/her life."

"Real worries" about Tireless after publication of experts report

A group of concerned parents, who have been at the centre of opposing the repairs here to HMS Tireless, say in a statement today that the first sight of the safety report produced for the Gibraltar government by a panel of nuclear experts, "exposes many real worries."
The report, they note, "has been prepared exclusively off-site without any examination of the submarine or the repair facilities."
They add: "Most of the recommendations in the report are made without any reference to the experts' decision-making machinery, which would confirm the reasoning behind the recommendations. Also, there are references to possible situations arising from the repairs, like a realisation that the damage is more extensive as is now the case, which situations are not covered by the MOD safety case."
The local safety plan, known as GibPubSafe, has not been drawn up with the Gibraltar situation in mind, as the panel admits. "This is the only documentation which is supposed to protect the civilian population and which is, in the view of emergency management experts, deeply flawed," says the group.
(16.10.00)

When will inquest be held on Tireless Sailor’s death?

A British crewman from the stricken British nuclear submarine ‘ HMS Tireless’ was found dead in Gibraltar. That was last June. To date, an inquest has not been held.
The body of the sailor was discovered outside the Caleta hotel where he was staying “ and had apparently fallen from his fifth floor balcony”, said the statement issued by the British forces in Gibraltar at the time.
A postmortem examination was carried out and the police were investigating the circumstances surrounding the death.
However, the inquest is still to take place on what is a matter of particular interest to the family of the deceased and also to the public at large, given the public interest suscitated by matters surrounding the Tireless.

Pet Crematorium petition

A petition calling for a pet crematorium has been started and signatures are being collected.
The petition reads: “ We the undersigned, propose that there should be a facility in Gibraltar for a Pet Crematorium with a Garden of Remembrance. The above facility would also serve as temporary accommodation for pets (holidays, illness etc.)”