Opposition Leader Grant Gibbons called for stronger laws to bring corrupt public servants to justice in the House yesterday.

Dr. Gibbons said corruption was costly to the Island in many ways.

?It is costly morally, but it is also costly because it diverts the resources of Government away from those most in need,? Dr. Gibbons said. ?Corruption really impacts those who can least afford it.?

And corruption increased costs for business who were expected to fork out for bribes.

The Leader of the Opposition said it was vital for our business reputation to look at the problem, and he said it was important for politicians and civil servants to set a high example.

?No one is above the law and those who exercise public power should not be seen to be above the law,? he said.

He said major international organisations such as the UN, EU and OECD had all looked at the issue as being vitally important as corruption allowed organised crime and terrorism to flourish.

If not checked corruption could damage a jurisdiction?s reputation for international business said Dr. Gibbons who cited the example of Panama under Manuel Noriega.

He said the Caymans and British Virgin Islands had had to deal with Government officials caught with their hands in the till and he praised South African President Thabo Mbeki for firing deputy president Jacob Zuma over allegations of wrong doing.

A study by one group of analysts had shown cracking down on corruption could increase investment and improve the GDP.

The speech drew tetchy responses from Government with Premier Alex Scott rising after Dr. Gibbons cited the example of the Bermuda Housing Corporation.

Dr. Gibbons said the Auditor General had pointed out there was evidence of kickbacks at BHC during his special report into controversy at the quango. And when Dr. Gibbons spoke of rich countries being reluctant to write-off debt for poor countries because of widespread corruption in Governments of the debtor nations backbencher Derrick Burgess asked him to withdraw the comment, saying he was impuning Government.

Dr. Gibbons said he didn?t understand the anxiety on the Government side.

He said: ?The Government are getting noisier. When you get flak you must be getting near the target.? He said anti-corruption legislation was just one factor. Also needed was a whistle blowers act to protect those who lived in fear of reprisals when they reported wrong doing, the opening of the House?s Public Accounts Committee to public viewing and a Code of Conduct for MPs.

The Opposition looked at anti-corruption legislation from other jurisdictions who have adopted specific measures, he said, including Jamaica, St. Lucia, Australia and Finland.

He said the Jamaican Act mentioned in his motion is the Corruption Prevention Act 2001.

?Clearly this is no-nonsense legislation,? he said. ?Some may see it as Draconian, but Bermuda needs to find its own balance.?

The Act has a wide scope, but in Bermuda, he said this would translate to mean civil servants and politicians, including Senators and Ministers. Quangos such as Bermuda Housing Corporation, Bermuda Land Development Company and West End Development Corporation would also be covered in the Act.

?The Act defines the scope of corruption as anyone who solicits or accepts any article, or money, or other benefit for themselves or others for doing or omitting any act they are supposed to do in their public function,? he said.

A classic example of corruption would be to make a work permit be sent through faster, but expecting something in return. ?For example, a civil servant could say they will overlook something for a dinner, or a trip to New York, or even $100,? he said. ?If you look the other way or pass a particular planning application I will do something for you.?

But the Act also covers the private sector too, in so far as prosecuting the people who ask public servants to be corrupt. It also covers any ?middlemen? or ?agents? of corruption, he said, or those individuals who ask the corruption of public servants for other people. And should a public servant try to corrupt someone outside of Bermuda, for example at American customs at the Bermuda International Airport, they too can be brought to justice under the Jamaican Act, he said.

If a public servant owns far more assets than can be accounted for through their salary, they have to explain themselves, he said.

?If for an example someone in an entry level Government job has two large boats, a couple of cars and three or four houses, but has assets that could not have made in Government, he has to explain himself,? Dr. Gibbons said. ?If he can?t explain it, then he is caught under the legislation.?

The Act outlaws insider trading, which ?allows someone in the private sector to get a jump on something?.

The Act seeks to keep better track of Government property.

?For example at a Government building project, a truck full of block or windows does not make it to Berkeley and ends up at a private construction site,? he said.

Although he made it clear that all of these examples were hypothetical, any one of them could happen in Bermuda.

Under the Act, Jamaica has set up a Commission for the Prevention of Corruption, made up of trustworthy, senior people. The Commission requires all public servants to make a declaration of their assets and liabilities. It investigates complaints, conducts investigations, summons witnesses, reports to the Jamaican version of the Department of Public Prosecutions and makes recommendations to the Minister to update the Act when necessary.

?All around the world we are seeing governments and international organisations move to address corruption,? he said. ?The corrosive, cancerous effect of corruption will not be tolerated. We are all concerned about it.?

But the Premier fired back at the Opposition, saying they had embarked on a dangerous campaign to taint the minds of the people.

Premier Alex Scott read a definition of the word corrupt as meaning ? tainted, rotten, depraved or wicked.

?Someone is on a campaign aimed at corrupting our thinking, or tainting our thinking, by making us believe something what may not necessarily be so,? the Premier said. ?We don?t want corruption because it is wrong. That?s the truth! No one said we wanted corruption.?

He said when the Opposition started ?playing around? and ?noising about? with concepts like corruption, they are broadcast abroad, and may be misconstrued.

?It can taint outside countries views of us,? he said. ?It can do an injury to this country if someone launches on such a campaign.?