A statement from Robert Vasquez follows below: 

The Gibraltar Social Democrats [GSD] announced yesterday an anti-corruption programme at a press conference attended by Keith Azopardi and Roy Clinton, despite having done nothing on that subject in the 16 years during which they were in government.

The coincidence is that the word ‘corruption’ was not in the Gibraltar political vocabulary until I brought it into vogue several years ago in a Gibraltar Chronicle piece and on my Llanito World online blog. It is now in the mouth of both the GSLP-Liberals and the GSD despite their, in the main, inaction whilst each were in government, that is a period of 27 years.

The further coincidence is that in the late summer and early autumn of 2022 I prepared a draft manifesto and copyrighted it on 14th December 2022. Then I delivered a copy to a senior GSD MP and now GSD candidate. It covered all the policies that the GSD have revealed to date, including anti-corruption policies, on very similar terms to those announced by the GSD. 

The draft manifesto was prepared because that GSD MP/candidate was at the time in discussions with me to set up a political party separate from and in competition with Azopardi’s GSD to fight this election.

I do not suggest that my draft manifesto has been copied, but I believe that much of what has been said by the GSD now on various subjects is inspired by that draft manifesto.

A vote for Robert Vasquez will put in Parliament someone who will fight for promises to be kept in accordance with his published manifesto.

Vote GSD or GSLP-Liberals and stay on the same merry-go-round of broken electoral promises.