The Government has released details on the draft Conflict of Interests Bill following further criticism from the GSD.

A statement from the Government follows below:

It is clear that Keith Azopardi does not want to admit he is wrong on the effect of the Conflict of Interests Bill. Mr Azopardi is, instead, choosing to spread misinformation that serves his own political agenda whilst taking sides with Iain McGrail and his lawyers against the findings and recommendations of Mr Justice Peter Openshaw who was clear in proposing that Gibraltar should adopt the Canadian model or a tailor made alternative.

In order to reassure the public, the Government has sought the detailed reasoning of the independent draftsman of the Bill, who is also the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards in the UK House of Commons, Daniel Greenberg CB. The draftsman has confirmed the following:

1. The priorities for drafting the Bill have been, in accordance with the principles applied to Gibraltar's legislative code in general: clarity; certainty; and enforceability.

2. The Bill covers all the substantive issues addressed by the Canadian Act and a number of additional issues relating to the conduct of public business (for example, in relation to keeping records of meetings). The main differences in approach are as follows.

2.1 The Bill departs from the Canadian Act by avoiding reliance on overly restrictive definitions or rules that create avoidance opportunities and on uncertain concepts that create enforcement difficulties. For example, the Bill's use of natural language terms (such as "family" and "business and personal associates") avoids both the artificiality of exempting a common-law partner for the first year of a relationship as the Canadian Act does, and also arguments about the meaning of terms like “primarily dependent” that are likely to frustrate enforcement.

2.2 Unlike the Canadian Act, the Bill: (a) gives statutory expression to fundamental principles of public life, including the Nolan Principles which will be enshrined in primary legislation for the first time; and (b) imposes overarching, and directly enforceable, duties on public officials of all kinds of a wide-ranging nature. It also gives statutory expression to the Ministerial Code, as recommended. These provisions will develop and support a compliance culture.

2.3 The Bill uses a legislative hierarchy to ensure that: (a) principles and fundamental provisions are clearly set out in the primary legislation; (b) secondary legislation is used to provide certainty and detail in relation to specific issues, as well as providing flexibility to react to avoidance attempts or changing circumstances, so as to keep the provisions relevant and effective; and (c) guidance and other quasi-legislation can be developed in consultation with the independent Commissioner and stakeholders to ensure that the entire public service community understands the purpose and effect of the legislation and how to implement it effectively.

2.4 In terms of enforcement, the Bill enacts a spectrum ranging from criminal offences to formal and informal action by the independent Commissioner of Standards, ensuring that minor or inadvertent mistakes can be corrected in a proportionate manner and criminality reserved as an effective deterrent for deliberate misconduct. It also uses a network of compliance officers and other processes to ensure that training and education are central to the compliance strategy for the Bill.

Overall, the Bill has been designed to fit with the legislative standards and structure of the Gibraltar statute book and to implement recommendations 1 and 2 of the Openshaw Report in a rigorous and effective way.

The Government is confident that the public will see this important piece of legislation for what it is, and not be swayed by the self-serving rhetoric of those whose only driving force seems to be to harm the Government – with Gibraltar’s reputation as collateral damage if necessary – at every opportunity.