Our understanding, in fact, goes further than that in that relations between No 6 and the Commissioner of Police Ian McGrail have been soured for some time and not only because of the incident mentioned?

At this point I am unable to report in any great detail. But Panorama understands there has also been something of a serious spat over the handling of an ongoing and protracted police investigation, unconnected with the fatal incident at sea! Again, we are unable to give details at this stage!

Political Interference

I have for many years criticised political inference in police operational activities, and did so regularly during the days of the fishing agreement when the GSD administration was in power. I was reporting at the time, from personal experience, having been the police commander in charge of the RGP’s marine section for a number of years. This being exactly why I am now deeply disturbed and concerned for the welfare of those police officers involved in the latest fatal incident at sea. And why, I support and positively acknowledge the all round support the Gibraltar Government is giving these officers as explained by the Chief Minister on Monday in Parliament. Few people, without doubt, would know what these officers are now going through.

All For Police Cross Border Cooperation

There’s no suggestion in this report that any political interferences have taken place. But I have highlighted in previous reports, and I quote from an article penned last year, ‘the Commissioner of Police has and is going over the top to sell his cross border policing policy to the local and the Spanish public and the world, on how Gibraltar’s senior enforcement agency (the RGP) ‘internationally cooperates’ with its nearest neighbour, Spain’.

I have also previously penned that I am all for cross border police cooperation. How could I not be? When personally, with other police colleagues of the past I have been involved and conducted countless cross border police operations in Spain. Well before most of today’s young RGP workforce were even planned by their parents as new additions to the family.

There’s nothing at all wrong with cross border police operations, as long as it is properly planned and operational limitations are recoded and made clear to our Spanish counterparts. Generally in my day, this was often verbally taking place in the middle of the bay on board an RGP Police Boat or Guardia Civil launch. There were always operational boundaries set, because even as I was and still believe today, I could never trust them, even with all the friendly back slapping hugs!

I have no intention of going into the most recent fatal incident as explained by the Chief Minister, because I think it is clear enough… it is politically a shit storm!

But I must remind readers, including the acting Governor, the very hopeless Gibraltar Police Authority, and also the Gibraltar Government, that effective supervision of the RGP has over the years been abysmal. Why the GPA still exist, as anything useful to the effectiveness of local policing is beyond me. I have penned dozens of articles on this exact issue!

The latest, serious issue, has landed, after the hard hitting investigation of the RGP by Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary, where the inspectorate was particularly critical of the manner our police force is being run, and I would add, the failure of those who are there to ensure it!

As Panorama said only last month. The Commissioner of Police used stock phrases, such as ‘there is always room for improvement’, as if to try and brush under the carpet the serious shortcomings brought to light in the inspection of the RGP conducted by these experts in policing. The report is generally or broadly, how the RGP is run and how it behaves, and obviously these are issues that cannot be ignored in any democratic society. What was surprising, was how the Chief Minister remained silent about it, but that’s another story.

There were many penetrating observations by the HMIC, such as the recommendations made in a previous inspection 3 years ago in 2016, which the latest inspectorate report highlighted that the RGP command had met or completed in only two out of eight areas for improvement from the 2016 recommendations. The UK inspection team noted it expected the RGP to have done more to assess and understand demand, risk and vulnerability. The inspection team, expected the force to be better at supervising investigations and managing capacity and corruption!

MORE IN PANORAMA PRINT EDITION

03-06-2020 PANORAMAdailyGIBRALTAR