Parliamentarians are set to debate Government's bid for Caribbean Community associate membership today.

And controversial changes to the Children's Act will also be debated.

Premier Jennifer Smith's motion asking the House to support the Caricom initiative is strongly opposed by the Opposition United Bermuda Party and is expected to be hotly debated.

The bill was withdrawn at the end of the last parliamentary session when it emerged that the support of some ruling party backbenchers could not be relied upon.

"There's no indication of anybody in the Government side opposing this," said party whip Ottiwell Simmons (pictured), yesterday.

Government's proposed amendments to the Children's Act will, if approved by the House, abolish legal distinctions between children born in or out of wedlock.

Also on the agenda are changes to the Sale of Goods Act which contains a plethora of consumer protection measures.

And MPs will be asked to approve changes to the Marriage Act which primarily requires people planning to get married to have their banns printed in the newspaper. The changes are designed to ensure the widest publicity possible and help fight marriages of convenience.