Mar 23 - GSD Says Chief Minister’s “Pettiness Is The Only Transparency”
The GSD has said that the suggestion from the Chief Minister that the reason for the adjournment of the Dr Giraldi Motion is because the Leader of the Opposition did not agree to take the Bill to establish the Gibraltar University on an urgent basis is “nonsensical” adding that his comment that the Leader of the Opposition is “paranoid” is “infantile" and “not worthy of response.”
A statement from the party continues:
“The truth of the matter is that it is for the Chief Minister to decide whether a bill is urgent or not. As the Chief Minister well knows under section 35 (3) of the Gibraltar Constitution “every bill shall be published in the Gazette, and the Parliament shall not proceed upon any bill until the expiration of six weeks after the date on which the bill was so published, unless the Chief Minister certifies by writing under his hand that consideration of the bill is too urgent to permit such a delay.” The matter is for the Chief Minister, not the Leader of the Opposition.
“In any event, the Gibraltar University Bill could have been taken on Wednesday of next week, when the six-week notice period would have elapsed. This is obvious from the agenda published by Parliament. The decision to adjourn Parliament and therefore, the Dr Giraldi Motion, to the following week when most people are away on holiday was a decision taken entirely by the Chief Minister for political reasons. Clearly the Chief Minister would like nothing more than to bury debate on that Motion. This is adding insult to injury to all those members of staff who were maligned over many years by the GSLP-Liberals when in Opposition.”
