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Falkland Islands: Weekly Penguin News Update

HER Royal Highness Princess Anne at Shackleton’s grave at South Georgia

Headlines: Royal party return after South Georgia trip; FIG restructure to offer more opportunities for locals; Seaman on trial for cocaine theft.

Royal party return after South Georgia trip

HER Royal Highness the Princess Royal returned to the Falkland Islands on Thursday morning on board the fishery patrol vessel MV Pharos.

Princess Anne was visiting the South Atlantic at the invitation of the South Georgia Heritage Trust of which she is a patron.The ship docked at FIPASS at 9.30am in heavy rain which persisted throughout the day.

Princess Anne elected to have a free day in Stanley before travelling by road to Mount Pleasant where she was to have dinner with the Commander of British Forces Air Commodore and Mrs Moulds. After lunch at the Seamen’s Mission the Princess Royal and her husband Vice Admiral Timothy Lawrence visited the Museum and Government Archives.

The party are due to depart the Islands on today’s airbridge to return to the UK.

FIG restructure to offer more opportunities for locals

THE jobs of Falkland Islanders in top positions in government are not in jeopardy, but new employment packages are, “under discussion,” was the message from the administration this week.

The government’s Chief Executive, Tim Thorogood, has been instructed by Executive Council that one of the purposes of the government management restructure is to give local people more opportunity to move into senior positions, not less, Councillor Mike Summers has said.

Following on from the Chief Executive’s report on the future of government in December last year, Executive Council agreed the details of a new top management structure at its March meeting.

Mr Thorogood said the new structure will reduce the on-going costs of government by £200,000 per year after four years. This was, he said, to be achieved by: “providing a smaller top management team, devolving day to day management to a new second tier of Heads of Service, strengthening the government’s ability to reduce costs, progress privatisation and regulate effectively and improve the ability of related services to work together, by grouping them logically under a single director.”

It is this latter aim that has caused some consternation this week, with rumours that there was to be a wave of redundancies and new, lesser packages offered in government, particularly among Islanders holding key posts.

Mr Thorogood said that the process of change would take some time but he expected the new directors to be in place before the end of this year.

Within the corporate management team, new top posts at director level have been created which, the Chief Executive said, would give greater focus to strategic management, working across government and managing performance, including the achievement of financial targets.

Mr Thorogood said: “The new structure will help government achieve a number of the recommendations in my review, in particular improving our ability to plan ahead, work across government and drive up performance and reduce costs. It will strengthen our ability to progress privatisation and regulate more effectively. It also reduces costs substantially once changes have bedded in.

“I am pleased that we are able to achieve these changes whilst being able to offer senior opportunities to all existing Government Management Team members.”

New corporate management team posts include a director of Community Safety who, following confirmation once directors are in place, will be responsible for the Defence Force, Police, Fire and Customs and Immigration departments .

There is much speculation locally as to who from the current heads of these four departments could take up the position, with the current Chief of Police and Collector of Customs being hot favourites.

The outcome however, could well be dependent on the findings of an internal enquiry taking place this week, into the Chief Police Officer’s conduct during the time a large amount of cocaine was lost from a cell in the Police Station. Continued on page 2

Seaman on trial for cocaine theft

THE TRIAL began on Wednesday of Spanish seaman, Rogelio Curras Pastoriza, who was arrested in October and charged with the importation of a quantity of cocaine in to the Falklands.

While Mr Curras denied this charge, he later pleaded guilty to having unlawfully taken the majority of the impounded drugs from a locked cell in the police station,

An early objection was made by the defendent’s counsel Nicholas Walker, to the presence in court of Mr Curras’s fellow crew member, Jesus Carballo Martinez.

Mr Carballo was accused of drug importation with Mr Curras in October and pleaded guilty to the charge. He awaits sentencing at the end of Mr Curras’s trial and it was argued by Mr Walker that as the Crown’s chief witness against Mr Curras, it would be both unusual and improper for Mr Carballo to be present in the court room, except when called to give evidence under oath.

Senior Magistrate, John Travaskis accepted Mr Walker’s argument, despite the submission by Mr Carballo’s counsel, David Lang that as his client was to be sentenced after the trial of Mr Curras was concluded and was therefore much affected by the proceedings, he should be allowed to remain in court.

Saying that he believed Mr Carballo could be adequately briefed by Mr Lang, the Senior Magistrate ordered his removal, but permitted Mr Lang to remain. Continued on page 3

Public Notice

It is notified for information that Friday, 10 April, is Good Friday and all Government Departments, other than those providing essential services, will be closed.