27 August

Last weekend's serious incident in BGTW involving the notorious Spanish state enforcement body the 'Servicio Vigilancia Aduanera' or SVA and one of their patrol launches who illegally took executive action and ordered the local pleasure boat to stop, something that did not happen. And after a failed attempt to board the boat reverted to their favoured tried and tested enforcement method best known to them, when they fired shots, apparently into the sea. Not happy with that and for good measure, the Spanish crew then threw missiles believed to be bricks at the local boat, bricks that were probably stashed somewhere on the vessel as traditional back up projectile armoury… handy for close-quarters incidents like this.

On the face of it, the incident has yet again plunged the Gibraltar Government and one would think London, into another diplomatic crisis with Spain who continues unabated in its 'politically psychotic' stance regarding Gibraltar.

However, another now common decision emanating out of this incident is directing the RGP to conduct yet another investigation involving a Spanish state vessel. Although more absurd if you like, is the British Government who again are asking their Spanish counterparts to conduct their own investigation into the incident... diplomatic naivety comes to mind regarding the latter request by London to Madrid!

So the RGP have 'AGAIN' embarked on what can only be described as another meaningless criminal investigation involving the alleged illegal actions of Spanish state enforcement officers in BGTW.

Why Again? Quite simply because from memory the RGP have at least 2 or 3 serious open-ended investigations involving these same type incidents where firearms have been used or threateningly brandished at innocent locals in BGTW by Guardia Civil and others like the SVA.

To recap on the previous incidents where the RGP have or are conducting an investigation. An inquiry in fact, which has as far as the rest of Gibraltar is concerned, is still open, because no one has any clue or is aware as to the final outcome of these police probes.

In fact many believe that ordering the local police service to conduct an investigation of this nature, is a decision, probably taken and meant to pacify the mood of the local community, possibly to demonstrate, that something positive is actually happening. A decision no doubt that London has a hand in!

I say latter, because it is London or some official UK body who should be travelling to Gibraltar and be seen to be actively and legally involved in at least attempting to get to the bottom of these serious illegal incidents by Spanish state vessels. A move from a diplomatic point of view that would give an incident of this nature a totally different dimension as to the manner it is being handled.

Out of competency of any normal police service

It's easy to pass the buck to the local police who are effectively investigating not just an alleged misdemeanour by a Spanish state trooper, but more importantly, a serious illegal international incident in British Territorial Waters where Sovereignty has been compromised. Importantly, it is a situation, which is out of the competency of any normal police service, which is why in recent years all similar or past investigations conducted by the RGP involving the Guardia Civil, SVA and others have ended up on dead-end street without a word as to the final outcome of these investigations. What a way to treat the public.

OTHER INCIDENTS, OTHER INVESTIGATIONS

Here are a few recent similar investigations, which presumingly, are still open inquiries as the public have not been informed otherwise:

Jet Skier Shot At!

June 2013… RGP Investigates a similar incident that created a diplomatic storm after the Guardia Civil fired a number of shots at a local jet-skier who was close to shore in BGTW. At the time Foreign Office minister David Lidington condemned the shooting as 'completely unacceptable' and called on Spain to take action against those responsible.

Lidington informed everyone he had made it clear that 'the discharge of a weapon in or near Gibraltar is completely unacceptable and urged his Spanish counterpart to investigate urgently and to take action to ensure it would not happen again' - sounds familiar?

Chief Minister Fabian Picardo also at the time described the incident as a 'scandalous act of aggression which is illegal, imprudent, unprofessional and irresponsible' there is no doubt that the CM's opinion regarding the latest incident on Saturday obviously remains the same!

*The Case of the Concrete Block That Never Came Back!

July 2014…RGP investigates when a team of professional Spanish divers assisted by Spanish fishermen and many believe the Spanish authorities stole one of the concrete blocks from the artificial reef. Another huge political row ensued; where is the missing concrete block and how did the RGP investigation go is another mystery kept from the public domain?

Guardia Civil Point Weapons at Local Boat Owner in BGTW

August 2014…another RGP investigation got under way when our trigger-happy GC friends drew their weapons at a couple of locals, out fishing off Europa point. The Guardia Civil vessel approached the local boat in BGTW came alongside to take executive action. The incident deteriorated when the GC officers insisted in exercising jurisdictional control, one of the GC officers then drew a side arm, which he pointed, at one of the occupants of the local boat.

What The Convent Said Then!

Following questions at the time by Panorama the following Convent reply was received:

"The actions of the Guardia Civil constitutes a breach of UN Convention on the Law of the Sea. We will be protesting this directly with the Spanish Government, emphasising the importance of cooperation between the respective agencies in and around the Strait of Gibraltar, including on law enforcement and maritime safety.

"Incursions are a violation of sovereignty, not a threat to it. They do not weaken or undermine the international legal basis for British sovereignty over Gibraltar, including British Gibraltar territorial waters."

However, the Convent and FCO regarding the incident on Saturday are not saying much of anything, only repeating the same old and overused diplomatic mantra.

The latest investigation by the RGP regarding the most recent incident will get nowhere; it will not uncover anything we already don't know regarding the illegal actions and demeanour of Spanish enforcement agencies in BGTW.

The bottom line must be "How can anyone who is really serious about addressing these serious incidents in BGTW believe that breaches of 'UN Conventions on the Law of the Sea' and 'Violations of Sovereignty in the form of Incursions' are best handled by a local police service - who cannot possible be expected to effectively operate out of their normal professional competency within the law?"

27-08-15 PANORAMAdailyGIBRALTAR

LNG power station will include high-spec anti-pollution technology

August 27, 2015

The new gas-fuelled power station could be the quietest, least polluting in the world, according to responses made my specialists to residential concerns at yesterday's planning meeting.

According to Environmental Gain Ltd (EnGain), whose MD has previously lived on the Rock, the new Bouygues power station falls well within UK and EU noise and emission standards. The information was provided at a well-attended DPC meeting attended by Minister for Public Utilities and the Environment John Cortes, DCM Joseph Garcia, Town Planner Paul Balban and representatives for the ESG, GONHS and the Heritage Trust.

"In Gibraltar everybody is affected within such a small area of development," Nikki Wood, EnGain Managing Director told Panorama exclusively. "The air quality situation at the North Mole is not good at the moment so this will be helped by a modern power station using a different type of fuel, namely gas. That may raise concern here but it has been tested in various other countries across the world, demonstrating there is a good supply and is economically better.

"In terms of emission it is a lot of improvement over diesel so it's all about taking steps to a secure supply of energy because while the Government said they have commitments to renewable energy input, you can't rely on that.

Wood pointed out to the Panorama that a lot of effort was being put in to assess the likely implications of the power station under the worst case scenario: "The outcomes we found were that it would fall well within the limit values set for health in terms air quality and noise by European standards. It's going to be better than the current situation which is noisy with air pollution so while you won't have completely clean air because it is still a combustion engine but it will be managed by technology.

"There are a lot of safety checks so I think the Development and Planning Commission has now decided to set more detailed conditions for that development to go forward because of the urgent need for a new power supply here."

High standard

"The predicted air quality impacts are lower than the air quality standard for the protection of human health," said Alex Newton, EnGain Senior Environmental Project Manager. "Even though there will be an increased impact from the power station, the conclusion of the assessment will be that there'll be no significant effect to human health from its pollutants."

Wood took up the argument again during yesterday's meeting saying that "the power station will operate well underneath the limit values" set for pollutants and as the Waterport power station and temporary generators would be switched off, there could be even less noise and air pollution than before.

"To calculate what those future scenarios would be, we've gone further than the Institute for Air Quality guidelines, using meteorological data over five years to demonstrate that the power station in a worst case scenario would not operate above the EU limit values for pollutants," she said.

The work by EnGain has been conducted with the help of air quality consultants locally using situations which would normally be not occur, like using diesel during a whole year in the absence of Liquid Natural Gas (LNG). It used air modelling techniques developed on behalf of Bouygues by Canadian engineers because of the lack of real-time monitoring in the Waterport area.

"The assessment is robust technically, having taken data from other locations of Gibraltar," continued Wood. "It's not possible to have clean air coming out of a combustion engine but its emissions will be reduced by use of gas as a fuel as well as various technologies that are being put into its design."

One of these processes is called SCR (Selective Catalytic Reduction) which uses scrubbing to further reduce the amount of discharge from the power station while managing it under certain permitting later in the process.

Cleanest ever

Wood explained that they tried to create the quietest background for testing this noise scenario so they switched off the Waterport power station for several nights using temporary sound monitoring systems as well as envisaging the possible future North Mole Industrial Park.

"For Waterport Terrace and Harbour Views it is a very noisy area," she said. "In the future the noise background will significantly be improved upon from the current situation. Any location in Gibraltar would be sensitive to put a power station but in terms of local standards we have to consult with statutory bodies.

"Our job is to conduct an impartial technical assessment to gather information from those statutory organisations because this is the point where we can present the information to the public through the public participation process."

Origo confirmed to the public at the DPC meeting in JMH that all the current power sources will be replaced by six generating generations, half of which would be LNG-powered and the other half would be dual-firing to create between 16 and 42 megawatts of power by the end of 2017. He said that apart from the stacks the power station would be out of sight in its location at the former factory site while the existing Waterport power station site could be developed itself at a later date.

He mentioned that various government departments have been contacted and the current administration is working with the MoD on its own safety reservations with the facility's proximity to the airport. The DPC had previously heard reservations from around 500 signatories over alleged concerns of the positioning of the power station as well as its impact on noise and air pollution in the areas. However, the representative refused to be interviewed by Panorama.

On the insistence of Janet Howitt from the ESG, Cortes confirmed that he would go for "above and beyond the minimum standard set by the EU" for the new facility. "The power station is crucial infrastructure for Gibraltar and we're all fed up of pollution and of noise," he said. "We really have to strive to make this the cleanest power station in the world, so that people who live in the area will not even remember it is there.

"The Government shares the view of the ESG to be committed to Best Available Technology which would include electro-static precipitators, continue stack monitoring and reduce the effects of noise by acoustic chambers or other such measures."

The decision made by the DPC to grant the EIA is separate from its outlook on storage of LNG because the project had not been put forward at this point so this would not stop the power station being approved.

27-08-15 PANORAMAdailyGIBRALTAR

Wartime themed concert to mark Evacuation Day public holiday

August 27, 2015

A special concert to commemorate the wartime evacuation of the civilian population of Gibraltar will take place at the Victoria Stadium on 7 September.

This is the event that the Government has chosen to mark Evacuation Day, which will be a public holiday this year, the 75th anniversary of the evacuation.

The concert will have a wartime theme and will include performances to mark the music and the culture of the wartime era.

It will follow a number of other successful commemorations which have been held throughout the year to mark the chain of events which commenced 1940. Previous events have included a more formal Memorial which was held at Casemates Square, an exhibition which took place at the John Mackintosh Hall and the setting up of a website with data and photographs of the actual evacuation itself.

UNTOLD STORY

The wartime evacuation of the civilian population of Gibraltar is one of the untold stories of the Second World War. It saw the compulsory evacuation of women, children, the elderly and the infirm from Gibraltar. They first set sail for French Morocco, were then re-evacuated back to Gibraltar and then onwards to London, Madeira, Jamaica and Northern Ireland.

"The whole episode had the effect of cementing further the identity of the Gibraltarians as a people," said a statement from the office of the Deputy Chief Minister Dr Joseph Garcia.

The concert will include performances mainly by local acts with the Military Wives Choir from the United Kingdom also having agreed to participate. Their songs will include a Vera Lynn medley.

The theme will be set by the Re-enactment society in their new World War Two costumes. There will be dance pieces interspersed with singing. The dance pieces will come from Jade Federico, who will perform a dance entitled the Evacuation of the Gibraltarians, from the Gibraltar Academy of Dance with a piece choreographed by Paulette Finlayson and from Jonathan Lutwyche, who will perform a piece choreographed by Ann Marie Gomez. The concert will feature performances from Mount Opera, who will perform songs from the Andrew Sisters and Edith Piaf, and Paul Riley's Big Band featuring Chloe Martinez will include Glen Miller songs in their repertoire.

Invitations are being sent out to over 700 former evacuees, who have registered with the Government either on-line or in person. They will have seating provided for them. The concert which starts at 8.00pm is free and is open to the general public for whom limited seating will be provided at the back of the arena.

Commenting on the event, Dr Garcia who has been leading for the Government in this matter said: "The Chief Minister announced the Evacuation Day Bank Holiday as a symbol of respect and remembrance to mark the 75th anniversary of the wartime evacuation. The Government feels very strongly that this anniversary should be marked as part of Gibraltar's contribution to the wider War effort. It was obvious from the previous events that have taken place that the former evacuees themselves take pride in their own contribution and are very grateful that this is being recognised.

"There were some 230 evacuees who died while they were away from Gibraltar for reasons which included flying bombs, diseases, street accidents and old age. We have to celebrate with those who are still alive during the occasion but we must also remember all those who never made it back home."