Jul 18 - GSD Reveals Six Housing Estates “Mortgaged” By Government
The GSD has today revealed the six housing estates on which Government of Gibraltar has obtained the £300million financing deal mentioned during the Chief Minister’s budget speech.
Varyl Begg Estate, Moorish Castle Estate, Laguna Estate, Alameda Estate, Glacis Estate and Mid Harbour Estate have been identified as those sites which the party says have been “mortgaged” to secure “extra funding”.
The estates comprise a total of 83 buildings and the GSD says it is concerned that tenants living in these buildings will now be denied the right to buy their apartments.
At a press conference held at the GSD headquarters in College Lane this morning, Roy Clinton, the GSD Shadow Minister for public finances, said he was shocked to hear about the £300million secured and will be putting further questions to the Chief Minister Fabian Picardo at during next week’s Parliament session.
In response to Mr Picardo saying he is no longer selling off the family silver, Mr Clinton said: “The Chief Minister has pawned off the family silver so now people no longer have the right to buy their houses and will be effectively barred from doing this for a further 15 to 30 years.
“There’s very little information about this bar the Chief Minister’s budget statement and what I’ve found at Companies House.
“We don’t know what it’s for as such. In theory the Government can spend this £300million, and we don’t know whether it’s going to be used for the reclamation project or something else, at the moment we just have silence from the Government.
“Today we have put in the public domain the government housing estates and the buildings that have been mortgaged and we are going to table more questions in Parliament, and find out more information about what the Government’s intention is on this deal and what the long-term impact on rentals and houses.”
Mr Clinton carried out research at Companies House and claims that Gibraltar Capital Assets Ltd, the company involved in the deal, was set up a day before the general election.
Daniel Feetham, Leader of the Opposition, said this is something the Government must have had in the pipeline before the general election held last year.
Mr Feetham said: “It’s the first time in the political history of Gibraltar that the Government has had to raise this amount of money secured on the homes of people in this way, and that must telling you something about the public finances of Gibraltar.
“No government would take the risk of cheesing off so many people by mortgaging six housing estates unless they really needed the money. This brings that insecurity directly to people’s homes.”
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