THE Opposition United Bermuda Party has rounded on Government for failing to provide "sound policies and clear direction" to civil servants.

UBP leader Wayne Furbert spoke out after Premier Ewart Brown announced that he would be meeting with civil servant heads to discuss apathy within Government.

Dr. Brown accused some administrators of "not buying into this Government's programme or who are taking steps to retard it".

But yesterday Mr. Furbert said he found it hard to believe that there had been "some kind of performance breakdown".

And he accused Government Ministers of failing to provide leadership and clear direction.

Mr. Furbert said: "We find it extraordinary that a Premier of Bermuda has to meet with senior civil servants over concerns about their work ethic, their neutrality and even their apathy.

"Based on our own experience, we find it hard to believe that there has been some kind of performance breakdown across the civil service ? as implied by the Premier.

"The problem, rather, is a failure of leadership by Progressive Labour Party Cabinet Ministers. They are supposed to provide the leadership that marshals the skills and knowledge of civil servants. But their effectiveness depends on sound policies and clear direction, and it is in these crucial disciplines that this government has failed from the start.

"We do not believe the PLP Government has yet figured out how to govern effectively or that it has even defined what the public interest is in any given area. Just look at Premier Brown's latest initiative ? the formation of a council of economic advisors whose first order of business is, reportedly, to study issues such as affordable housing.

"When one considers that affordable housing has been one of the biggest public concerns since the PLP came to power eight years ago, we can't help but think that this Government has no clue, no idea about what it is doing.

"We are very concerned the Premier is trying to make civil servants the scapegoat for the Government's failure to govern effectively.

"Reading the riot act to civil servants as though they are the ones responsible for the Government's poor performance is a good way to lay the blame onto others and, incidentally, to separate his Government from that of his predecessor ? something he is determined to do.

"But we see the Premier as an integral part of the PLP's record in office. He has had a seat at the Cabinet table since 1998 and was Deputy Premier in the Scott Government, for which Dr. Brown famously gave a failing grade during his leadership challenge.

"The planned meeting between Dr. Brown and civil servants also raises a warning flag. One of the pillars of good government is the maintenance of an independent, non-partisan civil service to carry out the policies of the government of the day.

"Dr. Brown appears to want to have only believers in the PLP programme working in the civil service, and we can't help but think he wants to test civil servants for their political loyalties. This is fundamentally at odds with the United Bermuda Party approach to government. We want an independent civil service and we believe it should be protected. That is why we call for a Whistleblowers Act to protect the right of public officials to speak up about government misdeeds without fear of retaliation."