Jul 07 – Lawrence Llamas Budget Speech
Mr Speaker, I am proud and privileged to be delivering my maiden budget address. The past seven months have been a defined learning curve for me - sitting on this side of the House is certainly proving advantageous. Mr Speaker, I shall be taking your advice from question time in making short and important points.
I have to start my speech, with what I feel is the most important issue depriving people of basic human rights in our society, even though we keep on earing promises, that is the delay in bringing to this Parliament the Disability Bill adopting the UN Convention. With a command paper having been issued months before the last General Election, to further delay bringing the Bill to Parliament, given it is a 2011 manifesto commitment, is unjustifiable. Any continued stalling will only harvest bucket loads of sour lemons, it is simply reprehensible for Government to drag its feet on this one, and reply with their rhetorical answers.
Yes, it is always easier to blame a previous Government for delays, but we are not here to question previous administrations, we are here to progress by working with and scrutinising the Administration of the day. I do not have to shoulder the blame of past administrations, in the same way as you are not reminded with historical issues! The UN Convention was published in 2006, the person on the street does not care who did what and when. What the person out there wants to hear is: why, is it taking Parliament 10 years to bring this piece of legislation?
I must stress, that when it finally makes its way through these doors, I expect it not to be the watered down version published in the command paper and instead takes on board the hard work done in preparing the Disability Bill between 2006 and 2011 which Government wants to pretend never existed even though all stakeholders have copies. I understand that representations have been made to Government by the stakeholders with their concerns and advice, and I truly hope Government listens and adopts the UN Convention in its full version.
On the other hand, I am able and pleased to congratulate Government on its achievements in making public areas, such as playgrounds inclusive for those with disabilities, it is gratifying to see playgrounds where children of all capabilities are having fun, I hope to see more of this in the future. I welcome the estimate item to finally include a lift to this House, I know of a particular person who will be making continuous use of the lift!
Returning to another area of pussy footing is the delay in providing a Family Centre which was an issue of concern for this administration during their terms in opposition, has fallen down the waistline with one parliamentary term having already elapsed without seeing the opening of this centre.
Another important area which is proving difficult to assess, is the situation which I believe exists in the Care Agency but is almost impossible to scrutinise that is the influx of sub-contracted workers. I have however, been able to identify that 48 subcontracted workers were working under the disabilities umbrella as at February 2016, out of a potential total complement of 95. Astounding though it is, this means that more than half of the personnel is subcontracted. I make this point on the basis of the limited information which is publicly available and in the hope that the members opposite can prove me wrong during this parliamentary session. This would make a welcome departure from the smoke screens and diversions to which we have become accustomed from the other side of this House on this subject.
These workers receive basic training and are entrusted with tendering to the needs of the most vulnerable members in our society. It now transpires that there is no independent regulation in this sector and that Government regulates these contracted parties! This is wrong in any sector, but when we are talking about the most vulnerable members of our community, it is completely and utterly intolerable, and shocks me to the core. Government should not play a surety part in this venture at all. There should be a robust body, as is the FSC in its jurisdiction, as is the GRA in its jurisdiction, as is the Environmental Agency in its jurisdiction, that can professionally and independently review this sector, without fear or favour.
We understand that annual leave, maternity leave and sick leave may give rise for a need to seek assistance from recruitment agencies in order to keep the services running, however, this should not be in lieu of employing and training long term staff. Furthermore, there is a bigger issue than just long term employment for workers, but also long term continuity for the service users. There are service users who cannot tolerate sudden short term changes, and these should be avoided at all cost and cover should be sourced from the existing team of staff and not externally. This also gives rise to a slow developing workforce who are not trained as they evolve but rather become stagnant and unmotivated. As a result, the sector is run on a continuous ‘firefighting’ mode, instead of having a robust human resources policy and management, which not only guarantees continuity of service, but also factors in long-term training requirements.
I strongly believe a Care Quality Commission is pivotal to the success of the Care Agency, Elderly Care Services, the GHA and domiciliary care. It monitors and assesses the quality of the care being delivered and rate it accordingly. It does so with full independence and freedom. This, coupled with an individual Carers’ Support Plan and supportive carer policies would truly take Gibraltar to a different level in line with other modern forward-thinking societies around the world. Stay home unpaid Carers should be recognised by Government in as many ways as possible from enhanced employment conditions, respite, financial benefits, training and advice etc. Some of these may be available to certain carers who may have sympathetic employers, but it is important to provide an accessible legislative framework in this area so that it is open to scrutiny, clear and available to all recognised care-givers. We should be working together on cross-party policies that are for the benefit of those who elect us, beyond elections, beyond administrations, and beyond party politics.
On a more positive note, I am pleased to see an item in the estimates for Project Search, although it is surprising that this has not been promoted at this budget speech from members opposite, we strongly believe this to be an improvement on the current Supported Employment Scheme given its tried and tested structure. It will enable young adults to grow within a framework, whilst at the same time supporting employers in with each individual placement. It’s all about creating awareness and destigmatising the employment of individuals with learning and/or physical disabilities in the private sector. I look forward to seeing the progress made by this initiative in the upcoming months and trust those currently employed under SEC will be transferred onto Project Search so they may also benefit from this initiative.
It has also been encouraging to see and welcome the awareness campaign in fostering and adoption. This initiative must be maintained and expanded in order to achieve the results we all want to see. As well as the evident usage of fertility clinics revealed in last week’s question and answer session, IVF services formally introduced by this Administration for those unable to naturally conceive is proving successful.
Moving onto the administrative aspect of our Health Care. The Primary Care Centre, we understand and accept is a work-in- progress. No administration has ever got it 100% right, however, it is important for Government to listen to both complaints made directly to them and from the Opposition benches. The system is leading to many cases left unattended for days and weeks, long waiting times on the phones and complicated systems which our elderly in particular find difficult to comprehend.
This inevitably has a knock-on effect on the overuse of the A & E department and causes unnecessary delays there.
We also see a huge amount of cancelled operations, we have no reason to doubt the Hon Minister for Health when he suggests that the majority of cases are not due to the GHA’s inability to perform the surgery, but the fact remains that the number of cancelled operations due to bed shortages is staggering. I hope that these will diminish with the eventual opening of the long overdue Dementia Residential Facility.
Once this is opened, it will inevitably not be enough, we are living longer, and the older generations need to have infrastructure and policies to cater for their needs. One example which we need to materialise is the accessibility of older people in private accommodation who are unable to access Albert Risso, Bishop Canilla and the upcoming Charles Bruzon House. I hope Government initiates in this area in a user subsidised residential accommodation where this demographic can enjoy their independence albeit in a suitable infrastructure.
I have to congratulate the Government on their MS Nurse initiative which I understand is providing the support and accessibility MS sufferers so needed.
Additionally, we fully support and congratulate the organ transplant program which this Government has initiated and enacted on seeing already one successful case.
We also look forward to the Oncology centre being in operation and hope it provides the treatment to as many sufferers as possible so they can avoid the added inconvenience on travelling outside Gibraltar for treatment.
Moving on to Tourism, which I feel is an important area for Gibraltar, regardless of which political party is in government, and where we should, therefore, try and develop ideas and steer away from partisan politics as much as possible.
The Government prides itself on the upward trend we are seeing, but they fail to mention that this follows the sharp drop created during their first term in office.
The Government have spent £4.37m on tourism marketing over the past four years. One would expect to see tangible results as a result of this level of investment in the tourist sector.
I will accept and congratulate the staff involved in the increase of air passengers, and reiterate the fact that the new terminal has allowed for air connectivity expansion which would simply not have been possible from the old terminal, let alone parking the planes in the old layout. However, what Gibraltar is crying out for are more connections to cities in mainland Europe. I hope this will become a priority for those involved and wish them all the best in achieving exciting results.
In cruise passenger figures, I note with pleasure the work carried out in order to restore the level of passengers to that enjoyed by the Rock during the GSD’s golden age period in office. I would now urge those concerned to motivate cruise liners to stay for longer, looking through the statistics, there are many cruise liners who only spend a few hours in port, meaning that passengers have limited leisure and retail time available. In many cases, because they arrive in the early hours of the morning, the time available to them in Gibraltar does not even coincide with the opening hours of the Upper Rock Nature Reserve. As well as stifling potential tourist expenditure, the true ‘Gibraltar’ experience is minimal.
In terms of land frontier figures there is a drop of 15% between 2011 and 2015. This drop is sufficient to stifle the overall figure of tourists entering Gibraltar. This downward trend is also the case in tourist expenditure, where we are seeing a 29% drop from 2011 to 2015. If the levels of tourist expenditure seen in 2010 and 2011 had been maintained, this would translate into a tourist expenditure loss of 300 million pounds over the last four years. And all this, Mr Speaker, whilst spending unprecedented levels of investment in marketing. These figures are important Mr Speaker, they cannot be ignored, this trend affects traders and businesses in our streets which is why I have made the point in the past, the tourist sector is a pillar from our economy, one which can grow in a sustainable manner but not to be meddled with irresponsibly, one that must be handled with care. We can throw all the money you want at marketing, but if we don’t have root and branch planning, organisation and infrastructure, the tourist experience is soured and the long term vision is impeded.
For example, Mr Speaker, we have always maintained from our first press release following the foreign vehicle ban to the upper rock, that we agree with this measure. We were providing ways in which this policy can be implemented in the best way possible for all concerned, with the tourist’s experience at heart, additionally, we were urging Government to exempt those with disabilities from the ban. The latter is claimed to have been taken on board, even though there is nothing on the Visit Gibraltar website to indicate that this is the case and I quote from the website “No unauthorised private vehicles are permitted in the nature reserve, however a number of walking, taxi or bus tours are available”. On this basis, Mr Speaker, unless you’re on an organised tour, you are unable to visit the Upper Rock!
Of course this will impact negatively on the level of revenue to government from upper rock site entrance fees. But where is the infrastructure and tourist experience? Yes, we have seen unprecedented levels of investment on the upper rock, £1.8m on flashy gimmicks between the Suspension bridge and Mount Misery lookout, which at a personal level I like as I am an adrenalin junkie, but we are still seeing filthy water habitats for the macaques, and inadequate priority and foresight to improve the basic health and safety for tourists by introducing balustrades, whilst, we are encouraging tourists to walk around the upper rock. This is an accident waiting to happen.
Europa Point is another tourist hot spot, it is visited by millions of tourists every year, it is an idyllic location overlooking the majestic Straits of Gibraltar, yet the old shop that was demolished has been left there as an eyesore, a simple provisional landscaping of the site could at least bring the land in line with the rest of the area. Not to mention the state to which the popular playground built by the GSD Government has been allowed to deteriorate too. What is the point, Mr Speaker, in permitting the destruction of a popular area which is enjoyed by so many Gibraltarians, just to score cheap political points? Surely the community comes first, or do the members opposite care only about votes at election time?
Moving on to another of my assigned portfolios, the Port. The Gibraltar Port recurrent revenue is coming in at staggering downward figures, the tonnage dues once enjoyed by Gibraltar of £4.3m at a peak in 2012/2013 have disintegrated into £2.6m estimated for 2016/2017. If the up going trend up until 2012/13 had at least been maintained, Government would have had almost £4m more over the last three years! £6m by this time next year. Where is this money going to, to our neighbours across the bay?
In a lesser scale, the same can be said for the bunkering revenue, from nearly breaking the million-pound mark in 2010/2011, the forecast for 16/17 is a measly £400,000 in comparison. It is safe to say that approximately £1m of revenue has been lost probably due to migration of business to shores close by, meaning local businesses are also losing out in these trades. It is a worrying downward trend and I genuinely hope to see an upward trend in both these areas.
But still Mr Speaker, we have a beautiful small boats marina, coming in at £24m, 700 lucky owners have been gifted berths to the tune of £34k each, in exchange for which they are liable to pay service charges to a sinking fund for maintenance services. If this is not a clear example of the culture of entitlement which we have so often talked about, I don’t know what is. The cost of each berth which has been gifted to each user is roughly equivalent to the 50:50 mortgages which new homeowners have had to obtain under the recent affordable housing schemes, it simply does not make sense. It’s not all bad though, it’s brought back recreational fishing as we used to enjoy in the North Mole, and I’m happy for those who have obtained a berth, good for them, I hope Government will publish the successful applicants so that the electorate can see that it has been a fair process. As a stand- alone project, it clearly has its merits. In the context of prudent management of our economy, particularly with the threat of an EU Referendum looming over us at the time. I am convinced that there are much more meritorious projects which should have been prioritised, such as the dementia facilities, St Martin’s School and all the other schools for that matter.
I must say, we will welcome the new yacht registry being prepared will see the requirement for vessel insurance amongst other important pre-requisites, together with the Fast Launch Act amendment. I highlighted both issues recently in a Viewpoint programme where I stated that these measures should have coincided with the opening of the mid-town marina before owners begun to purchase their vessels. Having said that, I must say we were told of the Fast Launch Act amendment by a seller up the coast months before the amendment was even published.
Moving swiftly, on to animal welfare issues, it is sad to note this
Government’s abysmal failure in respect of investing in dog parks, the £25k investment out of an earmarked £50k provision at the Alameda Gardens has seen an attempt to convert a footpath into a park but unfortunately it is still a long way away, as highlighted back in January, the surface needs rethinking as well as the basic fencing and gating of the area. Unfortunately, I can only say it looks like a waste of money from where I’m standing. Looking from the estimates book, it looks like no further investment will be directed that way in the current financial year leaving the gloomy area as is, and the plans shown to the public will be nothing but a mirage, something which will inevitably not go down well with dog owners in Gibraltar especially in light of the 500% increase in dog licenses. And a 250% hike in dog registrations as from November. Clearly, you’re better off owning a boat than a dog!
I understand that the increase in licenses will subsidise the DNA testing to match dog fouling to its owner, a measure which I fully support, however, it is sad to see that this model, which has been mimicked from the Island of Capri, will not be met with the equivalent fine for offenders of 2000 euros as exists in Capri. The money from irresponsible owners should be subsidising this venture and not just the responsible owner.
I hope to be given the opportunity to work with Government on issues of concern such as adequate management and care for feral street cats, breeding and sale of pets, welfare and neglect, and all other areas in which we are underdeveloped and need modernising.
Finally, Mr Speaker, I wish to thank you, the Clerk and his efficient staff for all the help and support you have provided me with in my short time as a Member of this House.
I would like to end by reminding the House that I come in good faith to hold Government to account, as well as to ensure that its policies and commitments are fulfilled effectively and justly with the ability to congratulate them when they do so.
Thank you
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