Sep 18 - Feetham Disagrees with Governor's New Constitution Claim
Opposition Leader Daniel Feetham has expressed his disagreement with the Governor’s recent statement that the New Constitution was an ‘overreaction’ to the failed Joint Sovereignty Talks.
Responding to the claims that have caused somewhat of an outcry this week, Mr. Feetham said that, ‘It will be recalled that in 1999 the Government of the United Kingdom invited British Overseas Territories to provide proposals for Constitutional Reform and in that same year the then House of Assembly set up a cross party Select Committee on Constitutional Reform which on the 10 October 2000 invited written and oral representations from members of the public. The Select Committee then reported to the House of Assembly in January 2002. The Constitutional Reform process could not have been a reaction to the Joint Sovereignty Talks.’
Forming part of the Gibraltar Delegation that negotiated the New Constitution with the UK, Feetham believe that history will see it ‘not as a reaction to the joint sovereignty talks, but as part of the often difficult but hugely worthwhile journey of the people of Gibraltar to self-government.’
He added, ‘however, to the extent that the current differences between the Government and HE the Governor relate to the appointment of the Attorney General, that appointment must be made in accordance with the provisions in the New Constitution and must be made transparently and in accordance with principles of good governance that one would expect in any democracy. The same, of course, applies to other senior posts within the public sector.’
