GSLP-Liberals-Manifesto-2019

let’s talk about...Joseph
JOSEPH GARCIA HAS SERVED YOU AS DEPUTY CHIEF MINISTER OF GIBRALTAR SINCE 9 DECEMBER 2011. HE HAS ALSO HAD
SPECIFIC RESPONSIBILITY FOR EUROPE, CIVIL AVIATION, LANDS AND PLANNING AND HE HAS BEEN IN CHARGE OF NO-DEAL
PLANNING FOR BREXIT. HE IS A HISTORIAN, HAVING TAKEN A BA AND A DOCTORATE FROM THE UNIVERSITY OF HULL. HE
HAS BEEN THE LEADER OF THE LIBERAL PARTY OF GIBRALTAR SINCE 1992 AND WAS FIRST ELECTED TO THE THEN HOUSE OF
ASSEMBLY IN 1999. HE IS THE AUTHOR OF “GIBRALTAR, THE MAKING OF A PEOPLE” WHICH IS RECOGNISED AS ONE OF THE
MOST AUTHORITATIVE MODERN HISTORIES OF GIBRALTAR. HE WAS A MEMBER OF THE DELEGATION THAT NEGOTIATED THE
2006 CONSTITUTION WITH THE UNITED KINGDOM. HE HAS SERVED ON THREE PARLIAMENTARY SELECT COMMITTEES ON
CONSTITUTIONAL AND PARLIAMENTARY REFORM.HE IS MARRIED TO PENNY AND IS THE PROUD FATHER OF JOSEPH AND
LAUREN.
DEMOCRATIC AND
PARLIAMENTARY REFORM
The GSLP Liberals remain committed
to enhancing our democracy. We have
already moved Gibraltar forward in this
area considerably from the position
that we inherited in 2011. We will
continue to consider and introduce
measures designed to improve the
quality of the democracy that we
enjoy.
CABINET GOVERNMENT
A GSLP/Liberal Government will
continue to meet in Cabinet at least
once a week in order to take decisions
on a collective and collegiate basis.
This delivers both Cabinet Government
(and not a Presidential style as was the
case under the GSD) and Collective
Responsibility.
MORE MEETINGS OF PARLIAMENT
The GSD held a total of 12 meetings of
Parliament in their last term of office
from 2007 until 2011. This compares
with 33 meetings in the first term
of office of the GSLP Liberals from
2011 until 2015. It is well known that
following the referendum on continued
membership of the EU, which took
place June 2016, there have been
less meetings of Parliament than we
would have liked. In Government,
we informed the Opposition of the
voluminous work generated by Brexit
and they understood. However,
despite all this there were still 16
meetings of Parliament in this second
term of office, which is still more than
the GSD convened in their last term.
PARLIAMENTARY REFORM
In Government, the GSLP Liberals
remain committed to the reestablishment
of a Select Committee
on Parliamentary Reform. The role of
the Committee would be to consider
the recommendations made by the
Commission on Democratic and
Political Reform which was chaired by
the Speaker Hon Adolfo Canepa. That
Commission also included Hon George
Mascarenhas, Hon Fabian Vinet, Mr
Charles Gomez and Mr Robert Vasquez.
They reported to Parliament in January
2013. The report was referred to a
Select Committee of the House at the
suggestion of Sir Peter Caruana. This
process logically delayed discussion
and full consideration of the report. It
was delayed further by changes in the
composition of the Select Committee,
as a result of resignations from the
GSD Opposition, and by the huge
volume of work generated since the
2016 Brexit referendum.
REFORMS IMPLEMENTED ALREADY
However, although more remains to
be done, some recommendations have
been implemented.
- More meetings of the Gibraltar
Parliament.
- Meetings of Parliament are now
streamed live and televised.
- More Motions are now tabled for
debate in Parliament.
- More important statements and
policy announcements are now made
in Parliament rather than in the media.
- A new pension scheme has been
introduced for new Members.
- A new rolling Register of Electors is
now in place. This did away with the
old practice of closing a register many
months before a general election
took place. The end result was that
persons who were not in the register,
for whatever reason, were unable to
vote. The register now remains open
until five days before polling day. This
positive reform goes to the very heart
of the democratic process.
- The introduction of vote by proxy
for this general election (as happens
in European elections) is also an
important step forward.
- An Act has already been passed
regulating the holding and conduct of
referenda in Gibraltar.
- The Clerk has investigated the use of
technology for elections in Gibraltar.
OTHER REFORMS
We have, since 2011, taken steps to
improve the way in which Parliament
works. There is now a defined time for
questions to the Chief Minister, and
when the Brexit diary has allowed,
this has been every third Thursday
of the month. It is incredible that
the Gibraltar Parliament did not even
have a website in 2011. There is now
a fully functional Parliament website.
This contains copies of Hansard (the
...aspire to the best Gibraltar
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