I discussed the new info with another person. We have both taken over major projects, so it was a case of what would we do in this situation and does it fit.
1. Nicola Wall took over on late Dec 2014, and travelled to Faro, possibly for introductions to a number of key Portuguese officials located in the Algarve.
2. A review of the project so far would have occurred. Andy Redwood had his lines of enquiries, his priorities and his team organisation. Nicola Wall should have her lines of enquiries, her priorities and her organisation. That assessment and change would take time. Whether it took 3 months is unlikely. Get the changes bedded in, then tackle the next stage.
3. It is now time to get the 'outsiders' on board, and the list in the original Portuguese article is exactly who I would be informing. These are the people at the top and the key players.
4. I would definitely make it face-to-face. It is a 'hearts and minds' pitch. Why has the British investigation altered course? This requires that some of the evidence for such a change is available to hand. Here's why the team will be acting on these priorities. There is also a need to evaluate feedback, on how well the pitch is going.
5. There may be a further practical reason for face-to-face. If I wanted to go in a different direction on this, I would value input from the Portuguese legal side as to the best way to do so i.e. what is necessary within their system.
6. The British media report comes later than the Portuguese ones, and it seems to be no more than a regurgitation of the Portuguese reports. It 'adds' that the meeting was in Lisbon. Since the Portuguese source said it happened in the Attorney General's office, and the Attorney General's office is in Lisbon, it adds nothing. That means any leaks were on the Portuguese side, while the Brit side simply monitored the Portuguese media. Assuming this is correct, Nicola Wall has scored an early victory. Nothing leaking from London, but something leaking from Lisbon.
If this line of thought is correct, I would not expect to see a flurry of requests over the next 2-3 months, as SY chomps through the new priorities, develops the evidence, then decides how to act on it.