19 May
The Guardian Angel Foundation would like to express its thanks to the staff of STM Fidecs for organising the recent Fun Run, which raised £5800 for the charity. STM Fidecs staff presented the cheque to Guardian Angel Foundation Chairman Kevin Hook, in the presence of the Minister for Social Services, Samantha Sacramento.
The family event was enjoyed by all ages, with a bouncy castle, face painter and Frozen characters all contributing to the fundraising activities.
186 runners participated in the 10km run, with the fastest time of 36 minutes and 55 seconds achieved by the Hercules Triathlon Team. A further 267 runners took part in the 5km run, with the fastest time of 19 minutes and 44 seconds achieved by Patrick Garner. The Foundation would like to thank all the runners who participated, and congratulates all those who achieved personal bests on the day.
The Foundation also expresses its gratitude to all of the organisers, volunteers and marshals for doing such a fantastic job at making the event a success.
The Guardian Angel Foundation was set up in March 2013 with the intention of improving standards of living for local children affected by genuine financial distress or suffering from any illness which impairs their physical or mental well-being. Furthermore, the Charity aims to provide financial or other support to any care homes or institutions which provide care, support or services to children in need. We would also hope to be able to fund any activities which may benefit children and make their lives happier with less worry, which really is what childhood should be all about.
Minister Sacramento, present at the cheque presentation, said: 'I am grateful to STM Fidecs for their community initiative and fundraising programme, and its staff for organising such a successful event. I would like to express my support to the Guardian Angel Foundation, who are incredibly proactive and actively engage with Government in support of initiatives that make a direct improvement to the lives of local children.'
19-05-15 PANORAMAdailyGIBRALTAR
Help for Nepal
May 19, 2015
The truth is that the situation in Nepal is really disastrous; only to see the News on television or newspapers, one realises the magnitude of the crisis, says Lions Club. The stories of those who are trying to rescue survivors is awe inspiring. Seeing the horrifying task of trying to find those victims who have been buried under tons of rock and meters of mud that makes it often impossible to recover their bodies, we can see how far Mother Nature is relentless in her destruction.
"For those who have died, we can do little more than comfort their families, but the reality of surviving in one of the poorest countries in Asia offers very little hope. There are millions who have lost everything: their homes, jobs and many loved ones, and it is to them that the Gibraltar Lions help is directed.
"We have donated £2000 and the generous sum of £522.00 in addition that, with your help, was collected on Saturday the 9th May. The Directors THANK the members for living up to our motto "WE SERVE."
"Many Gibraltar clubs joined together to make individual and separate fundraising activities here on this ROCK OF OURS, and THE GIBRALTAR LIONS was no exception. WELL DONE FELLOW BROTHER LIONS," they say.
19-05-15 PANORAMAdailyGIBRALTAR
How Governors do a disservice to Gibraltar and its loyal people
May 19, 2015
Talking point
Ex Governor Sir Adrian Johns may have had views which coincided with Gibraltar's, but by remaining silent during his term of office here, he simply did Gibraltar a disservice.
Thre he was the other day as chairman of 'the Friends of Gibraltar' making a speech in London which was sent to some but not to others, as if the so-called Friends had a choice, when all they did by their discriminatory action was to appear decidedly unfriendly.
That besides the point for now, the exGovernor said this:
*It would be wonderful to see the navy in greater strength in Gibraltar again
*There is I believe a strong case for an enhanced naval presence in terms of more capable patrol vessels as there is for considering an extension of the limits of BGTW from 3 miles to the international norm of 12.
By remaining silent when he was Governor, all he did was to let the Foreign Office off the hook and to foment the inaction that has shrouded such an important issue as the Spanish incursions.
In effect, he did a disservice to Gibraltar, to the people he should defend, by being so afraid of putting the Foreign Office mandarins in a corner.
Had anyone told him to act when he was Governor, he would probably have retorted with the excuse that it is by working behind the scenes that Gibraltar can gain more. BUT AS HIS INACTION HAS SHOWN, it is the opposite, Gibraltar has gained nothing.
An enhanced naval presence in terms of more capable vessels has NOT HAPPENED.
An extension of Gibraltar's territorial waters from 3 miles to 12 miles HAS NOT HAPPENED.
Imagine if as Governor he had voiced the opinions he is now voicing, the uproar in Parliament, the Foreign Office would have been put in a spot, he would have been seen of supporting the Gibraltar view - and Gibraltar and its people would have won the day.
But he kept quiet, which is typical Governor fashion then and now, and hence we are left with what he calls an under-represented and over-worked Navy in Gibraltar.
How can a viceAdmiral know this and allow this to happen because of some mandarins at the Foreign Office who are obviously not the best people to express views on such naval matters.
And as he added: it became 'starkly apparent as the fishing dispute took hold and incursions by Spanish state vessels began to stretch the Navy's ability to responsd.'
What he is saying is that the Navy was allowed to be over-worked and under-resourced - and the people of Gibraltar were allowed to suffer the consequences of Foreign Office inaction.
The sheer neglect of Britain not upholding her constitutional responsibilities to Gibraltar, which remains the case to date.
The loyal people of Gibraltar deserve better, and Governors ought to know better that they are expected to defend the loyal British people of Gibraltar in a loud and clear manner.
Governors of Gibraltar who are retired military personnel have nothing to lose, but they succumb to the inept attitude of the Foreign Office, and in doing so, give the impression that they think along Foreign Office lines, that it is the Foreign Office that is right and not the Government and people of Gibraltar.
What disservice in the best traditions of colonial manipulation.
19-05-15 PANORAMAdailyGIBRALTAR
Minister commends continued darts success
May 19, 2015
The Minister for Sport, Steven Linares has commended the Gibraltar Darts Association for finishing third in the team event at the Med Cup 2015.
The team who participated in the tournament held in Lido de Jesolo, Venice (Italy) will be bringing home a bronze medal having lost the semi-final to eventual champions Greece.
There were also other performances of note with both Dyson Parody and Dylan Duo doing well in the pairs event with another fine performance by Dyson in the singles event. The contingent have faced strong competition from across the Mediterranean.
Minister Linares congratulates the team adding "that this is just another in a long line of successes for the GDA as they continue to represent Gibraltar admirably".
PROUD
The GSD also congratulates the Gibraltar darts team on their bronze medal at the XVI Mediterranean Cup tournament in Italy.
The team comprising Dylan Duo, Dyson Parody, George Federico and George Ramos, with team management Angel Debono and Kean Olivero were in action over this past weekend and took their bronze medal behind Turkey and Greece. All of Gibraltar should be very proud of their achievement at this internationally recognised event, they say.
19-05-15 PANORAMAdailyGIBRALTAR
Spanish Ground Neutral Ground British Ground
May 19, 2015 | By Joe Garcia
The Spanish Government has been using strong words about the "isthmus", which stretches all the way back to the foot of the Rock. They say that it is Spanish and accuse Britain of daylight robbery.
It was at the first. Anglo-Spanish talks over Gibraltar in 1966 that the question of the isthmus blew over the negotiating table with the force of a strong levanter wind.
Spain had been moaning about the frontier and the British retorted that they would be willing to demolish the frontier fence.
But what came later is what started it all: "This proposal is made without prejudice to the view of Her Majesty's Government that Great Britain has sovereignty over the whole territory of Gibraltar, which includes all the ground up to the frontier fence."
ASTONISHED
The Spanish blew their top. They said they were astonished and accused Britain of having claimed, there and then, the sovereignty of the isthmus. The Spanish words were... "literally for the first time the British Government states that Great Britain has sovereignty..." The episode shows that dialogue can some times- make matters worse and not better. To date, the isthmus is claimed separately by Spain to the rest of the Rock.
Then,and now, the British position remains the same as that manifested in a paper handed to the Spanish Ambassador at the Foreign Office in London on 21 July 1966:
"Her Majesty's Government do not accept that the ground between the Gibraltar frontier fence and the foot of the Rock is Spanish sovereign territory."
Continues tomorrow
19-05-15 PANORAMAdailyGIBRALTAR
Will Gibraltar vote in EU referendum?
May 19, 2015
The State Opening of Parliament takes place next week and marks the formal start of the parliamentary year. The most important part of the ceremony includes the 'Queen's Speech' that is delivered from the Throne in the House of Lords. Though the Queen reads the Speech, it is written by the Government and sets out the UK's political agenda for the coming year, outlining proposed policies and legislation.
Queen Will Get EU Referendum Fever Rolling
This year we understand Her Majesty is set to get the EU Referendum fever rolling, when as expected, she will announce a parliamentary bill to approve the long awaited referendum bill.
Political observers have pointed out that this issue has been included in the speech so soon after the UK elections to allow for the least possible time before the bill can be formally tabled in the House of Commons. And also, to ensure Mr. Cameron's Government has the option of holding the referendum next year. The latter, already a highly debatable issue considering all the EU negotiations that is expected to take place before a referendum date is set.
However, the UK press has reported over the weekend and quoting Government sources, say, there are key factors that could accelerate the momentum towards a 2016 referendum. The early introduction of the bill and the fact that the Conservatives, unlike there last two attempts now have parliamentary majority. Means, the referendum bill could enter the statute books by the end of this year. Although this depends if the bill, is given a reasonably easy ride in the House of Lords, which was not the case in the previous attempt.
But, already warning shots are being fired between the lower and higher houses in Westminster. Mainly because this is a very important piece of legislation for the Government, one that goes to the heart of their parliamentary plans and the commitment they have made to the British public.
If peers break with the Salisbury convention, the latter says that the upper house should not delay measures in the winning party's election manifesto. then the government could force the bill through using the Parliament Act. The drawback here is that this process would take place a year after the bill's second reading in the Commons, which means the prime minister could override the Lords in June 2016.
It all means, the referendum could be held in July or after the summer break in September 2016!
Important News For Gibraltar
This is important news for us here on the Rock! Because, after nearly three years Gibraltar has not yet secured voting rights in the forthcoming EU referendum.
In 2013 Gibraltar was included in an amendment to the original Referendum Bill proposed by the Conservative party where Gibraltar had been omitted. This was unanimously passed in Parliament. However, this was later stopped in its tracks when it was sent to the House of Lords when opposition peers objected.
As already mentioned, Gibraltar's inclusion came after the European Union (Referendum) Bill when originally drafted in early 2013, did not include voters in Gibraltar. Panorama reported (at the time) that it was obvious, those that drafted the original EU Referendum Bill forgot or did not take into account that Gibraltar already votes in European Elections as part of the South West of England constituency.
Politically it was highlighted on the Rock, that the prospect of Gibraltar's economy being destroyed by the UK's withdrawal from the EU, via a referendum in which Gibraltarians as British and European Citizens had no say, would be disastrous for Gibraltar and disastrous for our concept of democracy. And it was the duty of the Conservative-led Government and the Conservative Party to ensure that this did not happen!
Luckily the latter message got through, with some interesting developments. And when James Wharton, the Tory MP for Stockton South (who has just been re-elected) in January 2013 brought forward a private members bill to amend and include Gibraltar in the referendum after the mistake was spotted when the Bill was at committee stage.
Two Unsuccessful Attempts to Introduce Bill Thwarted
Mr Wharton amendment was unanimously passed in the House of Commons, but as stated, when it reached the higher Chamber in the Lords was killed off.
Another attempt was made in October 2014 by the Conservative party to force the EU Referendum in 2017 onto the statute books. The bill passed a second reading stage in the House of Commons, but again there were problems getting the bill through the Commons.
Bob Neill MP who this time had brought the same (Wharton) private members bill to the house of commons accused Lib Dems last October of 'killing off' his EU Referendum Bill private members bill because of Lib Dem playing back-room "procedural games" after the Liberal Democrats refused to grant a government 'money resolution' for the EU Referendum Bill. The latter, an utmost requirement before further passage through Parliament.
A Short Title of the Amended Referendum Bill Reads:
European Union (Referendum) Bill (Page 3)
This Act extends to:
· 1…England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland; and
· 2…Gibraltar.
This Act may be cited as the European Union (Referendum) Act 2013.
Certainly by the looks of things the 'Amended Rerfendum Bill' has the support of whole of the Conservative party and is backed by the Tory Party leadership who want to create a legally-binding commitment to a referendum.
Before the UK elections, David Cameron pledged to get behind a fresh or third attempt to get a EU referendum bill into law, after peers killed off the original legislation.
Mr. Cameron said this week he was committed holding an in-out referendum in 2017 or before, whether a bill is passed or not. Meaning he was prepared to use the Parliament Act, a little-used piece of legislation (Salisbury convention) that asserts the primacy of the Commons to force it on to the statute books. And considering the Conservatives do not hold a majority in the Lords, this may happen?
James Wharton MP Confirms Situation to Panorama
Over the weekend Panorama spoke to James Wharton the MP who brought the original Referendum amendment with Gibraltar's inclusion, he told us,
"While I'm not in a position to make any commitment, I would personally think it likely that a parliamentary Bill to approve the holding of a referendum will be a part of the Queen's Speech, on Wednesday 27th of this month. There is some discussion of the referendum occurring at 2016, though it may still be 2017. There's still a long way to go with this process, but I suspect that is how it will pan out in the next couple of weeks".
David Cameron said last week, the government would use every tactic possible to ensure the referendum and the next session of parliament would provide an opportunity for another private member's bill, which he would support!
Most expect the Queen in her speech next week to make it third time lucky for the Referendum Bill and the overdue amendment allowing the people of Gibraltar rightful inclusion.
The UK Referendum issue itself, promises to be an extremely high profile democratic process, both in the UK, Gibraltar and in Europe. In fact a critically important issue to countless of millions!
19-05-15 PANORAMAdailyGIBRALTAR
