A controversial law forcing Bermudians married to non-Bermudians to obtain a licence for the purchase their own homes has been rolled back in the House of Assembly.However, such couples will still require approval to buy a second home — which One Bermuda Alliance MP Shawn Crockwell blasted as “fundamentally unfair”.The Bermuda Immigration and Protection Amendment Bill 2012 was supported on both sides, with Government MP Randy Horton acknowledging that the original 2007 restrictions “may have gone too far”.National Security Minister Wayne Perinchief called property rights issues “the third rail of Bermuda politics” and noted that “few things in Bermuda evoke such strong emotions as land”.The restrictions on mixed status couples, and on the sale of land by Bermudians to non-Bermudians, had been imposed to combat “predatory, unchecked capitalism” during the property boom five years ago, Mr Perinchief said, when “fronting” allowed non-Bermudians to circumvent property regulations.“It was unfair and, if left unaddressed, would have done a disservice to our people.”However, he acknowledged the unpopularity of the restrictions, telling the House: “All of us have been approached or lobbied to change this aspect of the law.”Adding that “some have sought to cast these changes as some kind of flip-flop”, the Minister noted that the provisions were “always temporary”.“In fact, the provisions expired last month,” said Mr Perinchief — when it became legal for Bermudians to sell real estate to non-Bermudians, with the proviso that the property's annual rental value be a minimum of $177,000.And a Code of Practice is to be devised, to guide Ministerial approval of the holding or acquisition of more than one interest in land by a person married to a Bermudian, and to address complex transactions.The Minister also revealed that 2,344 acres of local property is held by non-Bermudians — well ahead of the traditional limit of 2,000. The Bill sets a new territorial limit of 2,500 acres, which can also take into account the planned Morgan's Point and Park Hyatt developments.Also to address these projects, the Bill raises parish limits in Southampton and St George's to 450 acres.In his response, Shadow Justice Minister Trevor Moniz agreed that “the mischief of fronting” has posed a threat, but also noted that easy credit and generous mortgages had wrought havoc as well.“From this side of the House, the criticism was that the Act went too far with respect to Bermudians married to non-Bermudians,” Mr Moniz went on, calling the restrictions “punitive and draconian”.Government had been slow to respond, he continued, but the change was welcome.Mr Horton rose to commend the tone of Mr Moniz's response, conceding that, in 2007, “maybe we went a little bit too far. Maybe we realised that, and made the necessary adjustment”.Mr Crockwell, however, blasted the old restrictions as “a discriminatory policy that this government created”, and said the amendments remained discriminatory.In cases where mixed status couples acquired second properties, such as through inheritance, they were still obliged to obtain a licence from the Minister, he said.Mr Crockwell commended a clause clarifying membership of the Immigration Appeal Tribunal, adding: “But the overarching issue remains, that the Tribunal still has not met. It still has not heard one appeal, a year later, because it has not received its rules and regulations for how they conduct their proceedings.”OBA MP for Paget East Grant Gibbons rose to request that a public register be made available showing how the figure of 2,344 acres had been added up, and Shadow Finance Minister Bob Richards said reckless financial practices of five years ago ought to have been restricted instead of mixed status couples.Voicing his support for the Bill, United Bermuda Party Leader Kim Swan noted that “35 percent of Bermudians were poor or near poor, according to the Census of 2000”.Such residents had never enjoyed the “housing miracle”, Mr Swan said, and now, “eight to 12 years later, it's a question of 'welcome to our world',” he said.Of the Island's land resources, Mr Swan said: “We have to be guarded of the acreage that's available. Let's make sure we don't overdevelop.”