When British builder Haymills collapsed last year, an uncomfortable question about PAYE emerged as the dust began to settle.

In response to questions in Parliament, Chief Minister Peter Caruana revealed that a company part-owned by Haymills owed the public purse hundreds of thousands of pounds in unpaid taxes.
Mr Caruana did not provide the exact amount owed by Labour Hire (Gibraltar), but he described it as “a very, very substantial sum of money.”
“It’s not a million miles from a seven-figure sum,” the Chief Minister told Parliament at the time.
Labour Hire (Gibraltar) was half-owned by Haymills (Gibraltar), which went into liquidation along with several subsidiaries after its UK parent folded as a result of the economic crisis.
The remaining stake in Labour Hire (Gibraltar) was owned by Berrylea, another construction company that carried out extensive work for Haymills but ceased trading in 2008 leaving a trail unpaid debts with local suppliers.
Mr Caruana told Parliament that another company also owed arrears of PAYE and social insurance.
PCG Group, which worked under contract to the Ministry of Defence, went into liquidation owing “substantial six-figure sums”, the Chief Minister said.

The revelations drew a sharp response from Gibraltar’s opposition parties, who said large companies were being allowed to run up tax debts while smaller businesses were chased aggressively.
“The Government seems to be more lenient with large companies that owe large amounts than with smaller businesses who owe considerably less,”said the GSLP/Liberals in a statement at the time. “Indeed, while many small businessmen are called up by the tax office and reminded to pay their taxes on the 15th of every month, as stipulated in the law, the big fish who owe hundreds of thousands of pounds in taxes seem to be immune from this treatment and get away with it.”

“There can be no other explanation as to why such a huge sum of money is owed in taxes.”

The PDP expressed similar sentiments and asked why the debts run up by Labour Hire (Gibraltar) had not been picked up sooner.

“The Government should be monitoring such matters much more closely and not allowing companies to build up hundreds of thousands in tax or social insurance debts,” said PDP executive member Gigi Sene.

The Government roundly rejected the criticism and said Haymills, which had been widely regarded as a reputable British company, had succumbed to dire market forces.

It said Haymills itself had been up to speed with PAYE and social insurance contributions. Debts owed by a part-owned subsidiary could not be deducted from payments to Haymills for work done under contract to the Government.

As for the claims of discrimination, those too were off the mark according to the Government.
“The tax office has one policy and practice for all tax defaulters,” a spokesman said at the time.

“The allegation that there is preferential treatment for big companies compared to small companies is unfounded and untrue.”

And as Gibraltar moves into a new tax regime this year, Mr Caruana warned that officials would adopt a tougher approach to those who default on tax payments.

Speaking at the Chamber’s annual dinner in November, he said the new 10% tax rate would represent a very significant reduction in tax for most businesses.

“It is inevitable that its introduction will be accompanied by a new, more aggressive approach to collection, compliance and enforcement,” he said.
“Now, therefore, seems a good time for those of whom it is not already the case to put their house in order in respect of corporation tax, PAYE, Social Insurance contributions and correct registration and contractual classification of employees.”

“This also is a vital element of the much wanted ‘level playing field”.

Gibraltar Port has an incredible heritage having been established over 200 years ago. Key to Gibraltar’s success is its location. The east-west shipping motorway passes the “front door” and the north-south shipping route is less than 20 miles away. Location is the key to its success.

It is incredible to think though that set against the economic background of 2009, Gibraltar not only held market share but forged ahead in passenger numbers, cruise ship calls, vessels requiring marine services and bunker volumes. Overall the port saw an increase in trade in the order of 10%.

But looking back over the last 12 months a business is not just built on volume, a number of major projects have reached key milestones at the port. The most significant of these was in July when the workforce signed a new agreement, which took the port into the private sector. Key to a sustainable business model is developing your personnel.

The agreement has given a new sense of direction to the staff that are keen to build on the current situation. Although the port will continue to be owned by the people of Gibraltar, authority status will in time allow faster decision-making; and thus the ability to respond faster to market conditions.

The port is financially autonomous and not is a financial multiplier to Gibraltar’s economy but will also be a significant contributor to Government finances.

Another key milestone in 2009 was the start of the implementation of a new vessel traffic management system (VTS). The system will provide a platform that will deliver, during 2010, enhanced safety in the management of navigation, greater ability to monitor the environment. As well a new a web-based information system that will detail arrivals, departures and scheduling will be built. In time, this technology will deliver other benefits to the shipping community.

Although the economic climate is cool and trading patterns are changing, Gibraltar remains well positioned to benefit from the economic resurgence. A key target for 2010 will be to ensure shipping operates as efficiently and safely as possible.

Building upon the excellent reputation that Gibraltar has as a maritime service centre, during the next 12 months the port will look to deliver Safety, efficiency, profitability and of course value for money. This will require all stakeholders to pull together, working as a team equipping and enabling everyone to deliver their best.

The three months from January to March are traditionally those with the lowest demand for flights to Gibraltar and the Costa Del Sol. Airline schedules to Gibraltar in the first quarter of 2010 provide ample evidence that the airlines are fully aware of this! As always, timings are subject to change but these are the highlights.

British Airways (BA/BAW) Following the move of its London operation from Gatwick to Heathrow’s Terminal 3 at the end of September 2009, British Airways’ schedule continues with a single daily flight. Timed to leave London at 3.30pm, the service arrives in Gibraltar at 7.20pm before heading home at 8.10pm to arrive in the UK at 9.55pm. Passengers wishing to fly to other destinations through Heathrow must stay overnight in London as this flight arrives too late to allow connections. With the start of the summer schedule, this problem is eased as the service has been retimed. From 28 March, the daily flight leaves Heathrow at 8.00am arriving in Gibraltar at 11.55am. The return flight leaves ‘The Rock’ at 12.45pm and arrives in London at 2.35pm.

easyJet (U2/EZY) The low-cost carrier’s winter operation to Gibraltar offers a single daily flight from London Gatwick, leaving London on weekdays at 10am, with arrival at 1.50pm. Departing Gibraltar at 2.25pm the flight arrives back in the UK at 4.20pm. Weekend flights operate at slightly different times but are still scheduled into Gibraltar around lunchtime. The airline has confirmed that it will not increase its schedule for the peak season and will continue to offer just one daily flight to Gatwick. This operation represents a considerable reduction in the number of seats available. For the summer of 2008 for example, easyJet offered up to 17 weekly flights on the route in competition with British Airways.

Monarch Airlines (ZB/MON) The airline’s schedule to London Luton is at its lowest frequency for much of January through to the middle of February with just three weekly flights on the route. Timings of its Luton flights are now standardised with departure from the UK at 7.20am and arrival in Gibraltar at 11.10am. Flights depart back at 11.55pm with arrival in London at 1.40pm. As Easter approaches, the frequency will increase with summer schedules offering a daily flight on the route. Similarly, the airline’s Manchester route, reduced by a third during much of January and February, will return to three weekly flights in March.

Ándalus Líneas Aéreas (EA/ANU) After what can best be described as a comprehensive rationalisation of its Gibraltar schedule, the Ándalus operation on the route to Madrid now offers six weekly departures. On weekdays, the flight leaves Gibraltar at 8.20am arriving in Madrid at 9.35am. Departing the Spanish capital at 8.25pm the aircraft arrives back on ‘The Rock’ at 9.50pm. This schedule clearly allows a pretty full day in Madrid although Madrileños will need to overnight. In addition, there is a departure on Sunday evenings leaving Gibraltar at 6.30pm. With the start of the summer schedule (at the end of March), the airline has announced that it will reinstate the Barcelona service which will operate six days a week. In addition, the Madrid route will see an increase to twelve weekly flights.

Brian T Richards is a freelance air travel consultant
and aviation photographer offering an advice and
research service covering all aspects of the airline business.

www.briantrichards.com/atc.htm

atc@briantrichards.com

The Gibraltar Tourist Board exhibited at the 30h edition of FITUR (Feria Internacional de Turismo) in Madrid from 20th to 24th January. The exhibition is targeted at tourism industry professionals for the first three days, and then to the general public for the final two days, at the weekend, and is always very well supported.

A team from the Gibraltar Tourist Board will manage the Gibraltar stand providing a platform for the representatives of Gibraltar’s travel and tourism industry to meet their clients or prospective clients.
Co-exhibiting with the Gibraltar Tourist Board this year are:

• Andalus Lineas Aereas
• Bland Group of Companies
• Emile Youth Hostel
• Gib Sun Club
• Gibraltar Taxi Association
• MH Bland Group of Companies
• The O’Callaghan Eliott Hotel
• Parodytur/Parody Holidays
• Transcoma Lines

The Hon Ernest Britto, Minister for Environment & Tourism will paid a one-day visit to the Gibraltar stand during the event and also presented the journalism travel award for 2009.

The recipient of this year’s award is, for the second year running, Pepa Garcia for her article entitled “Gibraltar Capturando sonrisas”. The article appeared in the October/November issue of Viajeros magazine. Ten entries were received for the award which was open to all those journalists who published or broadcast a piece on Gibraltar during 2009 in the travel and tourism press in Spain, on radio, television and on the Internet. The award carries a prize of €1000.00 and a trophy.

The judges for this years award were HW the Mayor, Mrs. Olga Zammitt, Dr Clive Finlayson, Director of the Gibraltar Museum and Mr. Richard Garcia, Chief Secretary.

Cox and King the luxury travel company features Gibraltar for the first time in their 2010 European journeys programme. The company, which celebrated its 250th anniversary last year, specialises in tailor made tours and city breaks around the world. Their new Gibraltar programmme offers The Rock and Eliott hotels.

Ocean Village is to expand the number of berths they can offer from 225 to 323. Scheduled for completion in early 2010, the expansion will include premium berths for yacht of up to 90 meters.

The 8th Gibraltar Gibtelecom Chess festival takes place at the Caleta Hotel at the end of January and early February.

Gibraltar’s bunker market, the mainstay of maritime business here, sidestepped the impact of the economic crisis to register double-digit growth last year. Suppliers based on the Rock bucked the trend in many other European ports, which have seen sales decline on weaker global trade.

Gibraltar’s strategic geographic location and diversity of suppliers helped push volumes to nearly 4.7m tonnes in 2009, a 12% increase on 2008. Algeciras and Ceuta also reported growth, albeit on a more modest scale, and between them the ports of the Strait of Gibraltar delivered some 7.7m tonnes last year.

Although the figures had yet to be finalised as this edition went to press, suppliers in Algeciras expected to close the year with volumes of around 2.5m tonnes, compared to 2.4m tonnes in 2008. The increase in sales in Ceuta was similar to Gibraltar’s at 11%, though overall volumes were small at 534,347 tonnes. The increase in volumes comes at a time when some major bunkering hubs in northern Europe have witnessed a sharp drop in sales.

Reports in the international maritime specialist press suggest bunker sales in Rotterdam and Antwerp, two leading ports for this business, may have fallen by as much as 15% year-on-year in 2009. The growth in volumes in the Strait of Gibraltar market is good news for the maritime sector because bunkering activity generates a wide range of activities in other areas of business such as re-provisioning and repairs.

The proximity of the Cepsa refineries ensures reliability in supply for Spanish operators, while the large number of suppliers in Gibraltar helps on price and gives owners a greater choice range.The growth in business has prompted suppliers to invest in modern vessels, with older single-hull bunker tankers replaced by modern double-hull tonnage.
Authorities on both sides of the bay have also invested in equipment and training to combat oil pollution and are working on joint protocols to tighten navigational safety, combat spills and respond to shipping accidents.
As the sector grows, so too does competition. Algeciras, which has busy container and ferry berths, has always had a captive market for bunkering at berth, but the trend is for growth in the supply of fuel to passing vessels.

Part of that is driven by overspill from Gibraltar which, while dominating the regional market, has suffered some congestion over the past year.
The Gibraltar Port Authority has put in new administrative systems to minimise waiting times and is also pushing ahead with plans to open up the Rock’s east side anchorage area to bunkering operations, which are currently banned there.

The port authority has carried out a number of tests to check the impact on refuelling operations of currents and conditions in the area. It has also done extensive modelling to analyse the possible impact of a spill in the area. One vessel was supplied with fuel in a successful trial operation last summer, and everything is now set to open the area up to physical suppliers.

Once the port’s new Vessel Tracking System is in place in the coming months, officials expect to give operators the green light to proceed within strict criteria hinging on appropriate weather conditions. Over in Algeciras, new entrant Alpetrol Terminal last March awarded a €110m contract to Técnicas Reunidas for engineering and construction work at its new liquid bulk terminal on the Isla Verde Expansion.

The terminal will handle the storage and distribution of fuel products and will play a key role in developing the port’s bunker sector in the future. Morocco, likewise, also has its eye on this lucrative market and last year awarded Aegean Marine Petroleum, a major player in the Gibraltar market, a contract to deliver fuel in the new Tangier Mediterranean port complex. Aegean began operations there last August.

Having opened the New Parcel Post Office the Royal Gibraltar Post Office commits to greater postal efficiencies for the community.Easy access and environmentally friendly premises.

The new Parcel Post Office is located in a high-density populated area within walking distance of large estates. With its easy access drive-in and drive-out courtyard it has proved to be a great success with RGPO customers from all over Gibraltar. The RGPO is also very grateful to its customers for their feedback upon which it is acting. The new Mail Operations Centre (the Sorting Office) is currently being finished within the same building block. This combination will avoid having to place vehicles on the road driving parcels from one building to another within Gibraltar. The improved insulation provided by the new building will also lower heating energy consumption and costs, thus lowering the carbon footprint of the organisation and freeing the roads from more traffic.
Better use of real estate.
The combination of the two operations employs a much better use of the limited land space in Gibraltar. It allows for one set of amenities to be shared by both and in doing so has permitted the Government to greatly enhance these amenities. This better use of real estate has freed the much-needed, previously occupied prime locations within the Port Controlled Area and the Grand Battery itself. The relocation of the Sorting Office out of the Port Controlled Area will also provide the RGPO business customers with easier access to the Sorting Office without having to go through security checks at the Port Control Point.

Quality of service independently checked by radio frequency tags.

The Quality of Service at the new postal facility will now be independently checked by the Universal Postal Union (UPU). Radio Frequency Identification Tags will be randomly inserted into both inbound and outbound letters. Theses Tags will transmit to the UPU the date of receipt and despatch by the new Sorting Office and how long it takes for the respective customers to receive letters, both abroad and in Gibraltar. The UPU will be contacting people in Gibraltar, on a very confidential basis, to assist them with these Quality of Service checking tasks. The RGPO very much welcomes these Quality of Service checks, which are now operational through most developed countries. The RGPO feels that independent checks and benchmarking with other countries is always good as it inevitably leads to better quality of service, customer satisfaction and increased confidence in the global postal infrastructure and industry.

Global mail bag tracking
The RGPO will now be expanding its International Postal System (IPS) international internet link with the UPU. This system will allow the tracking of all inbound and outbound bar-coded mail bags. The mail bag labels will further be electronically linked via a database to corresponding parcel inventories identifying bag contents, thus allowing for easier tracing of all bags and parcels by the RGPO. According to Mr John Robba, Resources Director at the RGPO, IPS was created by the Postal Technological Centre (PTC), the technical arm of the Universal Postal Union (UPU). The system is a web-based application which interfaces into the PTC’s main mail logistics product. It covers the handling of Express Mail Services, letters and parcels, generating, receiving and storing all the electronic data interchanged between user postal administrations. It consequently provides postal administrations with operational and status information on imported and exported mail, including gated-tracking information at a consignment, despatch, mail bag and item level.
This first stage of the IPS implementation has already served to ensure that the RGPO’s outbound Christmas mail bags are not left stranded at airports, as was experienced three years back, and again keeps both the inbound and outbound quality of service in check.

The CEO Mr Chris Riddell expects that these technological advancements, together with improvements in the delivery of mail, will result in added revenue from foreign postal administrations in respect of the mail they send to Gibraltar.

Faster & more secure B2B & C2B PO Box mail service

B2B As the jewel in the crown for local businesses, business customers are advised that they can adopt a much faster local mail service to their businesses via the use of a PO Box. Businesses which possess a PO Box will be able to drop off any mail addressed to any other local PO Box at a new, purpose-to-task pillar-box to be installed within the PO Box Unit at Irish Town. This can be undertaken at the time of collecting their inbound mail from their own PO Box, thus economising on time and effort. Alternatively, they can hand in such mail at the Irish Town PO Box Unit counter, as indeed some customers are already doing.
The incoming mail will be delivered to the PO Box of destination as soon as sorted at Irish  Town and in less than two hours (if posted within two hours of close of business) thereby achieving an ultra-efficient, environmentally-friendly and fast B2B mail service.

C2B – In addition, any Customer wishing to post mail to local businesses or any other PO Box user may also post their mail at the PO Box-mail designated pillar-box. This mail will also be delivered to the addressee with the same efficiency as per B2B above.

In contrast, if PO Box addressed mail is posted in any given street pillar box this mail is only collected the next day at 7am (Sunday to Friday), sorted from all other mail at the Sorting Office, then delivered to the PO Box Unit and thereafter inserted into the PO Boxes by midday. The direct Irish Town option is thus safer and much more efficient, as the mail never leaves the site.

Businesses are reminded that mail destined to local PO Boxes should simply have the name of the person, the name of the organisation, the PO Box Number and finally GIBRALTAR or E/V as the address. There is no need for any other information; indeed, any extra information can make the address confusing as to the service required.

The Business Community is encouraged to take up a PO Box and follow the simple ‘deliver & pick up’ methodology for all their PO Box Mail, thus benefiting from this B2B and C2B fast and secure service.
This service is also proof against any disruption in the mail service.

The Minister with responsibility for Postal Services, the Hon JJ Holliday, told B2B that ”The Government continues strongly committed to ensuring a second-to-none Postal Service, the pursuance of its environmentally-friendly policy and the efficient use of the limited land mass in Gibraltar. All these policies have been reflected in the choice of site and design of the new Postal Building”

In 1810, a young man recently-arrived from Liverpool took the first steps into a commercial venture
that would span 200 years and evolve into one of Gibraltar’s household business names.

The story of MH Bland, a family company that has now diversified from its core shipping interests to include the tourism sector, is one of dogged determination.

Marcus Henry Bland, the company’s founder, started with modest means, setting up a shipping agency in his home in Irish Town, which was then the business heart of Gibraltar and a hive of trade and commerce.
The company grew despite stiff competition and passed to his son Marcus Hill who, in December 1840, went into partnership with Charles Middleton and John Mackintosh to establish the firm of Middleton Mackintosh & Bland.

It was a time of great change and the partners sought growth in the opportunities arising from new technology. The development of steam engines, coupled to the rising trade volumes as a result of Gibraltar’s strategic location, allowed them to tap new areas of activity and expand.
The death of its founders some years later dealt the company a blow, but one that would revitalise the venture rather than cripple it.

Marcus Hill died in Liverpool in July 1856 and passed on his interest in the company to his sons Horatio and John who, as a result of the subsequent deaths of Middleton and Mackintosh in the early 1860’s, gained control of the company. In September 1865 the goodwill and trade of Middleton Mackintosh & Bland was taken over by MH Bland & Co.
The company developed as a ship agent, ship owner and coal merchant and played an important role in the development of the port of Tangier, on the Moroccan coast.

Even in those early days, the company’s vision was regional, seeking to build on the Strait of Gibraltar’s unique role as a crossroads for maritime trade. But the company’s rapid expansion was not without its challenges.

In December 1882 Horatio died of heart disease and control of the company passed to his brother John. Then ill health forced John to step down and, in 1887, he left the running of the business to Joseph Gaggero, who had joined the staff as a clerk in the 1860’s.

Joseph’s grandfather had arrived from Genoa early in the 19th century and had been born in the same building where Middleton Mackintosh & Bland had offices. It was a coincidence that had set his future career in motion.

John Bland died without heirs in June 1891 and later that year arrangements were put in place to permit Joseph and his brother Emmanuel to purchase the company for the sum of £28,474.

A limited company was formed in London as there was no local company register at the time and on 23rd December, 1891, during the first board meeting of MH Bland & Co Ltd, Joseph Gaggero was appointed Managing Director and his brother Emanuel as Director.

Over the next 18 years, the two brothers took the company into new territory. They increased the size of the company’s fleet of ships from four to 12 vessels, and sought new trade flows between North Africa, Spain and the United Kingdom.

In November 1911, Joseph died and due to Emanuel’s poor health, the management of the company passed to his youngest brother Avelino, who had previously moved to London to become a prominent merchant there.

Then came 1914 and World War I. It was a traumatic year for both company and family. Trade flourished as a result of France and Spain taking over Moroccan affairs, but war clouds loomed and Avelino’s death on 2nd August 1914 could not have come at a worse moment.

A hurried meeting of the board took place and it was decided to appoint 17 year old George, Joseph’s son, to the position of Managing Director.  It was a daunting responsibility for one so young.  War broke out on 4th August 1914, two days after George’s appointment.

Together, George and his brother Charles, who had joined the company a short while afterwards, steered the company through the Great War, the great depression of the 1930’s and the tumultuous years of World War II.  By now the company was active in numerous business sectors ranging from salvage and  ship repair to the timber trade, an ice making factory and aviation, in addition to its existing shipping interests.

The company played a prominent role in the development of the Rock and, in 1941, George received a knighthood for his services to Gibraltar.

By 1946, George and Charles had decided to divide the business in what was to be the first re-organisation of family interests.

George retained the shipping and aviation interests and would seek new opportunities in shipping, tourism and aviation in the region and beyond.

Following the family tradition, Sir George’s sons, Joseph and John, subsequently joined the business in due course.

In 1962, the company invested in an innovative project that would create, in the decades to come, one of Gibraltar’s main landmark tourist attractions.

The building of a Cable Car to the top of the Rock represented a major commitment to the development of Gibraltar’s fledgling tourist industry. It opened for business four years later but by 1969, the closure of the frontier threatened its survival.

Yet throughout and in spite of the prevailing trading conditions, the company continued to evolve. Symbolic of the Gibraltarian spirit at the time, the ferry, Mons Calpe, built to specification in 1954, resolutely provided an invaluable maritime link with Morocco.

Sir George retired from what had by then been rebranded Bland Ltd in 1970 and passed away on 4th September 1978.

After having brought the company through the closed frontier years, in 1986 Joseph and John decided to divide the business in what became the second re-organisation of family interests.

Joseph retained the family’s interest in aviation, its travel agencies and its hotel under the name Bland Ltd, while John retained shipping interests and the Cable Car under the original name MH Bland & Co Ltd.
Under the guidance of John and subsequently his sons Johnnie and George, who took over the running of the business when John retired in 1997, MH Bland has forged ahead.

The company has refocused its energy into its core sectors of tourism and maritime activities and through an ambitious programme of investment, Johnnie and George have successfully steered what has become the MH Bland Group into the 21st century.

Building on the tradition of seeking regional opportunities, port agency offices have been opened in Algeciras and Ceuta, thus bringing to fruition the “Three ports, one team” concept and taking advantage of the growth of the bunkering business in the region.

In a bid to rationalise port services, various operators and assets were purchased in 1990. Now, under a single banner of MH Bland Marine Services Ltd and in harness with the port agency network, MH Bland offers an integrated range of services to an extensive local and international client base. Tugs, barges, supply vessels and other specialised equipment have all been purchased or built to suit local requirements.

Since the re-opening of the frontier in 1986, the potential of the Cable Car has been unleashed and the facility has undergone a series of refurbishments and upgrades becoming along the way Gibraltar’s premier tourist attraction.

In order to accommodate the needs of a burgeoning international cruise industry intent on revolutionising their shore excursions programmes, a local coach company, Calypso Tours Ltd was purchased in 1992 and in the subsequent years has modernised as well as tripled its capacity to satisfy demand.

MH Bland Travel Services bridges the two sectors of shipping and tourism by specialising in the sales of cruise holidays while offering the services of a fully fledged travel agency to the leisure and business traveller. More recently in 2007, Eco Tourism Ltd, operating under the trade name of Dolphin World, has been brought into the Group, offering excursions into the Bay to experience the delights of seeing dolphins in their natural environment.

As they look towards celebrating their 200th anniversary over the course of 2010, the current fourth generation and their dynamic young team look with pride at the achievements of the past and with excitement to the future.