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Chief Minister Comments On McGrail Statement Regarding GibTalk

03 February 2025
Chief Minister Comments On McGrail Statement Regarding GibTalk

The Chief Minister, Fabian Picardo, has reacted to the statement from Mr McGrail in respect of Mr Picardo's GibTalk.  

Below follows a statement from the Chief Minister follows below:

"I am not surprised that Mr McGrail has issued a statement condemning me. 

"Luckily, Mr McGrail is no longer empowered to do anything other than make statements. 

"It is clear that Mr McGrail continues to think that he is beyond reproach, that no one can have an opinion that is contrary to his and no one can criticise him without fear of being "condemned" by him.  

"The fact is that Mr McGrail's condemnation is entirely irrelevant to me and to my clear recollection of his deception.  

"The Openshaw Inquiry is not into whether Mr McGrail lied to me or not, but it is, in my view, abundantly, forensically and objectively clear that Mr McGrail did lie to me at No6 Convent Place. 

"It is equally clear to me that a Commissioner of Police, or any other Office of the Crown, lying to a Chief Minister should not be acceptable to any Gibraltarian.  

"I will therefore continue to repeat that Mr McGrail lied to me because that is what I genuinely believe and I will not be prevented from doing so by any condemnation rolled out by Mr McGrail and his taxpayer-funded lawyers. 

"In my GibTalk, I was reflecting personally on what happened to me in the past 10 years.  

"Mr McGrail's part in that is only anecdotally relevant, but not hugely important in the context of the events in my most recent decade in Government."