The GSD has said that the announcement of a 12th October general election date is no surprise and now the formal campaign can start. GSD Leader, Keith Azopardi, has called a meeting of the Executive Committee of the Party for this evening. He will ask the Executive to set deadlines for nomination of candidates for the Party’s selection process and for the selection meeting. 

A statement continued: “It was widely expected that Mr Picardo would choose a date in mid-October. That became clear when the McGrail Inquiry that was supposed to start its main hearing on 25 September was postponed and its next interim hearings are to take place in late October. It is inconceivable that Mr Picardo who faces unprecedented and serious allegations of improper conduct would want any uncomfortable hearings in the McGrail Inquiry taking place during the campaign as a reminder to the electorate of what is being said against him.” 

GSD Leader, Keith Azopardi, said: “At last the waiting is over. People now know that they will have a chance on 12 October to make the change. Many people cannot wait for that date to send a strong message to Mr Picardo and his Government for their failings over so many areas. We have been ready for months and will soon roll out our exciting programme for Government to get Gibraltar back on track and achieve a bright future. 

“Over the last couple of weeks we have been treated to a torrential shower of glossy pictures and announcements. The GSLP/Libs have a track record that suggests that many projects either die at the glossy announcement stage or suffer years and years of delay. The examples are too numerous to list. No one who has suffered at the hands of their broken promises will now believe their last minute further round of them. The GSLP/Libs have had to borrow money to pay civil service wages. No one will believe there is such a miraculous recovery that they can splash millions on all the projects they now say they want to do. 

“The date had been expected because Mr Picardo is running scared from the McGrail Inquiry and was always going to choose a date which was clean of hearings in that case. He has nothing left in the tank other than a further round of unrealistic promises against a backdrop of a public finances crisis. In a bid to distract from his failures he has already started to peddle false narratives against the GSD on Brexit, Andorra or our future attitude to women’s reproductive rights. All those narratives are false. But that is what happens when he has nothing left and can only resort to lies and spin. 

“The sooner Gibraltar is rid of this administration the better. It is now part of the problem and has run its course after being elected on a ticket of being the New Dawn. They have ended up being a false dawn to many. They have returned to old unaccountable ways and have left Gibraltar with unprecedented levels of debt of £1.9 Billion. There is no running from that stark reality which is Mr Picardo’s legacy to future generations. They are a Government of the privileged few and unable to put in place the controls on waste, abuse and corruption that are necessary. 

“Gibraltar needs change and a Party ready for Government and only the GSD can provide that. We will seek to deliver a safe and beneficial Brexit agreement given that Mr Picardo has had 7 years and failed. We will bring public finances under control and introduce robust controls on waste, abuse, and corruption. We will govern better – with no more lies. We will reform public services and plan better for a sustainable future with quality of life and opportunity for all. That is the GSD vision for a bright future for you and your family.”