If ?it?s an election budget? was the worst the Opposition could complain of about the 2005 Budget, told the House of Assembly yesterday that he was ready to take such criticism.

In fact, the UBP?s Reply to the Budget Statement sounded like an Election reply, he said as the Budget Debate kicked off yesterday morning in the House of Assembly. ?Everybody?s trying to get on this side of the House.?

There is not one newspaper that is owned or operated by the Government, he said ? ?except perhaps the Worker?s Voice?.

Even so, coverage of last week?s Budget Statement screamed positive headlines, he said. ?These are headlines out of a media environment that we neither control nor have much collaboration with. ?In this case there was a rare association. That?s honest reporting ? they were simply telling the truth about Government?s Budget.?

Speaking as the Minister of Tourism and Transport, he said no-one could accuse the Ministry of Transport of not achieving anything in the past seven years.

?In Transport we have delivered. I would venture a guess that?s why we?re not debating Transport (during the Budget Debate).?

The fifth fast ferry slated for St. George?s, though it took ?a little Fabian? to make the point that it was needed, was just another example of the fulfilment of Transport?s vision.

However he was concerned at Shadow Finance Minister Grant Gibbons? comments regarding Tourism in his official Reply to the Budget, delivered yesterday.

?One thing I will not do is become defensive in my posture,? he responded to criticism about the direction Tourism is taking. ?They will have to have their say, but I am not going to operate from the back foot. In that posture, you are a bad salesman.?

Government has set measurable benchmarks for its 2005 Tourism Plan and they will be met, he said. If they are just missed, ?this would be a proud Minister, but I would come to this House and apologise for not meeting the target, and say that we are on the job?.

When Government does not plan they are accused of having no vision, Dr. Brown said, before adding that when plans to court tourists from China are announced, ?a nation spending $16 billion on tourism, they say it?s funny. We will not be deterred?.

Tourism is off to a good start in 2005 he said, citing his visit just that morning to Whitney Institute as part of the Tourism in Schools programme.

Government is using tourism interest packages designed by former Tourism Minister David Dodwell in the programme after 14,000 were discovered at the Ministry never used. ?I think an election came,? Dr. Brown explained.

The bi-partisanship was evidence, however, that ?this is a Bermuda-first project?. With that in mind, he said he does plan to invite Shadow Tourism Minister Kim Swan to join him on the Tourism in Schools programme.

?But the trade-off is you can?t go bad-mouthing tourism,? Dr. Brown continued. ?You can?t stand up there with us and then turn around and say it?s failing.?

Dr. Gibbons? comment that Bermudians suffered from a ?crisis in confidence? regarding tourism was a statement made ?in a fit of depression and negativity,? he said. ?He has no evidence to support that ... That?s not my experience.?

Gone will be the image of Bermuda as a place to arrive, ?buy a piece of linen, buy a piece of china, buy a piece of codfish, and go home,? he said.

And he corrected Dr. Gibbons? comments attacking the ?sizzle and pop? tourism initiatives, noting meticulously: ?It?s really ?pop and sizzle?.? returned to the theme of the new Berkeley saying it was unfair that $20 million had suddenly been found for Somers Construction that had been denied former contractors ProActive. He said: ?I think you would be pleasantly surprised about how many people could have been up there if you had $20 million pulled out of a hat and slapped in their hands.?

He welcomed the money being spent on increasing frontline policing but said it was time to dismantle the gangs by infiltrating them. praised the budget as one which would help working people. And he raved about the new, staggered rates of payroll tax which gave breaks to small and medium sized businesses.

?There has been no increase in basic items, buses, ferry fares, vehicle licensing fees. These are things the poor man worries about, sin taxes, beer money, cigarette money. Whether he can buy gas for the car.?

?These are the bread and butter issues that the ordinary man on the number nine bus or the ferry from Somerset to Hamilton is concerned about.

Moving on to payroll tax he said: ?I am so impressed we finally have progressive tax structure.?

The ceiling for the lower rate for small businesses had been doubled said Mr. Perinchief, adding: ?This is excellent.?

He also lauded the zero duty on importing farm machinery which he said would help increase productivity. ?If you do the same thing for fishermen I will be happy.?

However said the budget had done nothing for seniors.

She said the 3.5 percent pension increase would be swallowed up by an estimated inflation rate of four percent for the coming year while those who had been hit by doubled or trebled rent at four of the island?s senior homes needed much bigger raises to make ends meet.

She said sarcastically: ?You did something for seniors with the land tax. That was fine for seniors in Tucker?s Town and Fairylands. The haves shall have more.?

The proposed wellness clinics for seniors were half-cocked said Mrs. Jackson who said they would only be of use for preventable care.

?We were asking for health clinics with geriatricians and registered nurses to help seniors who are sick who can only get two free doctor?s visits a year under (the Hospital Insurance Plan) HIP.?

She said she agreed with a suggestion put to her that Westgate prisoners got better health care than seniors.

?The standards in our nursing homes in many respects are deplorable.?

She said one family had been so shocked at what was on offer they were forced to club together to pay $3,000 for a caregiver who could only provide cover from 9 a.m. to 2.30 p.m.

?They are suffering financially, there?s got to be a better way. We have to have affordable decent living facilities.? stood firm on Government?s stance on the selling of property to Non-Bermudians.

?Government came up with this policy as part of our preserving and protecting land for Bermudians,? Mr. Horton said.

He said there was a limited amount of land in Bermuda, so it was important for children 45 years from now to be able to ?be on land owned by Bermudians?.

Locals were ?fronting? Non-Bermudians in order for them to ?unscrupulously? purchase property, he said.

And undeveloped land was more important than developed land, he said.

?Some say this is discriminatory to Bermudians as Bermudians can?t sell to non-Bermudians for some five years, but in order for us to come forward and be prepared, we must make sacrifices,? he said, adding there was no better piece of real-estate in the world to own than in Bermuda.

Regarding work permit term limits, he said his Ministry did not want to give people the ?expectations they will be able to stay here as long as they want?.

?This Government had the testicular fortitude to provide protection to these people who have been here so long,? he said.

Although key-employers could be treated differently at Immigration, ?the vast majority of guest workers will not fall into the key category and will be required to leave after six to nine years.?asked why taxes weren?t reduced.

Mrs. Roberts-Holshouser noted that even though there were 573 net jobs created in 2004 only 28 of them went to women.

And she said a man collected cardboard boxes during the day in order to keep the five people who sleep in the back of his truck warm at night.

Women sleep in their cars but were ?afraid to go to Government because they are afraid their children will be taken away?.

Emergency homes for family?s were needed, she said, as currently there was no facility?s that take in homeless families.

Any boys aged over 13 cannot stay with their mothers at the shelter and instead get put in foster care.

?The sooner we put in place a systematic programme of housing for women the faster we can have a far healthier social environment?.denied corruption had ever taken place in Government.

?These were the findings of Scotland Yard!? he said.

Concerning immigration, he said every company who made an application to bring in employees were being scrutinised.said it would have been better for Government to ?discover the Social agenda in 1999. They had all the resources to do what they wanted to do.?

?The housing matter is one of the greatest horrors in our history, at the time of the greatest need it took Government six years to act,? Mr. Darrell said.said the budget debate reminded him of four f-words,?feelings, fiction, fantasy and facts?.

?The sky is not falling,? he said. ?We do have issues, they are not unique to Bermuda. They have gangs, and we are starting to see posse-type activity. We?re not proud of that. But we are not a sinking ship?.

He said no country in the world has full employment but believed ?all jobs have honour?.

Visitors would be best served when staff are at work and not at 10 a.m. union talks, he said.

?It?s critical. We can?t invite people to Bermuda if we can?t put buses on the road when they are supposed to be there?.