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CHIEF JUSTICE: Government "astonished" by Bossano?s Statement
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The Government says it is "simply astonished" by Mr Bossano?s statement in relation to the Chief Justice.
Mr Bossano says that the Chief Justice should be chairman of the Judicial Service Commission. He also says that the composition of the Judicial Service Commission should be reviewed and rebalanced as required to meet the concerns of the Chief Justice and so that it is more acceptable to the Judiciary.
The Government goes on to say that the truth and reality are as follows:-
1. At the time of the Constitution negotiations the Gibraltar delegation met specifically to consider the Chief Justices? representations. Every member of the delegation had before him a copy of the Chief Justices? written representation, including that the composition should not have the composition that it now has. In the specific knowledge that the Chief Justice opposed that composition, and after full discussion in which Mr Bossano took a full part, he and the remainder of the delegation disagreed with the Chief Justice and agreed to the present composition.
2. At the London negotiating round between the UK and Gibraltar delegations, Mr Bossano agreed to the text of Section 57 of the new Constitution, which provides for the composition of the Judicial Service Commission, and for the president of the Court of Appeal to be its Chairman.
A Government spokesman said that Mr Bossano?s statement therefore constitutes an extreme and incredible case of opportunism and shortness of memory.
The Government rejects the Chief Justice?s views about the composition of the Judicial Service Commission and other aspects of the Judicial Service Act. The Government believes that the Chief Justice?s legal action is misconceived and without legal foundation and will be firmly resisted.
In commenting about such matters a distinction has to be drawn between the term ?the Chief Justice? and the term, ?the Judiciary?. Only the Chief Justice thinks that the Act undermines the independence of the Judiciary. None of Gibraltar?s other Court of Appeal judges, High Court judge or Stipendiary Magistrate, think that, says a Govt press statement.
The alleged threat to the independence of the judiciary is the appointment of the President of the Court of Appeal (Gibraltar?s most senior judge), to the new position of President of the Courts of Gibraltar, and not to appoint Chief Justice Schofield himself as he wanted. "It is far fetched to believe that only the Chief Justice would be concerned about a real threat to the independence of the judiciary, or have the courage to uphold it, if it really existed," says the Govt statement.
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