Policy

In the run up to the leadership election vote Keith Azopardi set out a 100 day programme that he would undertake as the groundwork for the rebuilding and renewal of the Party.

That programme entailed steps being taken to reorganise the structure of the Party, overhaul the communications strategy, review existing policies, widen the GSD appeal so that we reached all sectors of Gibraltar and attracted more people into the GSD – especially young people.

Throughout the last three months that key groundwork has been done. New structures are in place to help support the work of the Executive. The policy rethink process has started. A deep community outreach programme has commenced and will continue for the rest of the year. The way we communicate is being changed and will see further change. New members are coming in and we are dedicating efforts to build a dynamic younger base to the Party that will make contributions to the Party at all levels.

That first 100 days which was so necessary to reposition the Party has now ended. Mr Azopardi addressed a Members Focus Group before Easter to explain the work that had been done and undertook to set out a renewed programme for the next phase of this work. Necessarily a lot of the initial work has occurred behind the scenes and so this is not visible to the public but as we go forward everyone can expect us to give even greater emphasis to a communication of our ideas.

“That first phase of largely silent groundwork was essential. That work behind the scenes will slowly bear fruit. As we go forward and enter this new phase of work I wanted to reiterate my commitment to members to take further steps to achieve the renewal and renergising of the Party. We will emerge from this work as a stronger alternative to Government. In that context and as I promised members I am now setting out the key elements of this further phase of work that we will be doing in coming months alongside our normal constituency and other work.”

“Moving forward we will:

• Reaffirm the Core Values and Objectives of the Party after a discussion of these at the Executive and with opportunity of consultation and input from Members;

• Review the Party’s Constitution to modernize it and ensure it is more responsive to the new structures and clearly sets out functions and roles of the various officers of the Party;
• Establish a Change Committee that will be chaired by the Leader and will supervise the work of all other new structures to ensure overall supervision of the deep processes of change that are being injected throughout the Party. This will consolidate the structural changes that are being carried out
• Continue the valuable Community Outreach Programme so that we can engage with sectoral concerns and ensure we can assist people in the most effective way;
• Place emphasis on the greater participation of new and former members at all levels of the Party’s structures;
• Be more active through our new Communications Strategy whether it be via social media, direct contact or written material;
• Start a progressive roll-out of Policy Commitments ahead of the next general election across a diverse range of areas so that the public can see what they can expect from a GSD Government

“These are exciting times for the GSD. I believe that we have stabilized the Party and that the next few months will see the fruits of that work. This is centrally important because it is clear that Gibraltar needs a strong alternative to Government. We will continue that work to transform the GSD into a more dynamic, fresher alternative to Government so that we are ready by the next election” said Mr Azopardi.