Anyone who thinks the campaign for good governance will wilt now John Barritt's out of the House had better think again.He may have to do it from the sidelines from this point on, but the long-serving former Devonshire South Central MP is vowing to keep up the pressure on the Progressive Labour Party to increase its transparency and accountability.And while Mr Barritt's battle for legislative reform may have won no points for sexiness in the past, he's convinced the current economic crisis is underlining how important it is to track how taxpayers' money is spent.“I welcome the opportunity to step back at this time, but one thing I will not give up on is my advocacy for reform of the legislature and Government generally,” Mr Barritt, who brought his 18-year career as an MP to an end last week, told The Royal Gazette.“I have been beating this drum over the years and I think it's gained traction. The need for this sort of reform, not only in my own party but throughout Bermuda and on the other side, it requires a complete overhaul and change in culture. But it can be done.“I will be a strong advocate in the OBA. I will continue to have a hand.“I don't think the House is the be all and end all. Sometimes the pressure has to come from outside the legislature to influence members in the House, so you can expect me to continue to advocate and comment.“We have fallen behind compared to other jurisdictions. Members know this from attending conferences overseas. It's almost embarrassing.“I think there's a natural inclination when in power to get on with governing and minimise the House and Senate as a forum for discussion and regard it as an irritant.“That's short-sighted. It means you fail to take advantage of any input from your own backbench for one thing. But I think the public is evidently switching on now.“I think people are now able to connect the dots and see in these economic times how important it is to be able to hold your politicians to account. It's not only about what they say, but about how they spend your money.“The whole Budget debate needs to be looked at. We have the general economic debate, then we go through the department heads and there sometimes isn't sufficient time to do it.”Premier Paula Cox has repeatedly stated her desire to improve Government's record on accountability, introducing the Good Governance Act to try to stamp out any unethical behaviour and pledging to carry out rigorous reviews where there are concerns over past projects.But critics point to the fact Ms Cox was Finance Minister while initiatives under her predecessor Dr Ewart Brown, such as the new TCD building and Dockyard pier, saw their costs soar.“I think the Premier is hearing what I'm hearing and trying to give people what they want,” said Mr Barritt.“I don't think that the Government is going far enough and fast enough on this issue. I think it's fundamental and ought to be near the top of the agenda.“I think that sometimes it requires a new broom to really sweep clean.“She was part of the regime under which a lot of these things occurred which successive Auditors General have been acutely critical about.“Most people scratch their heads and say, ‘Aren't we closing the door after the horse has bolted?'.“I think the Auditors General in terms of what they can do have been stymied to a certain extent because they can only go so far.“What's needed is the ability for forensic investigation. In order for them to be meaningful, they need to be independent. You can't have it in-house. Having something independent like that is a deterrent for anyone who can even think about doing anything.“The Public Accounts Committee needs to become far more active and needs its own legal advice. The PAC to this point has almost been looking at things on a historical basis, when it's too late.“They should be able to take contracts when they are issued and when they are being undertaken. That's much more effective than looking at things after the fact.”In the closing months of his Parliamentary career, Mr Barritt finally achieved a breakthrough when he and former PLP Premier Dame Jennifer Smith rewrote the House rules to introduce Question Time and make PAC meetings public.“While I didn't get all I would have hoped to have done, I have seen some success,” he said.“Question Time is a start. It needs to be refined and honed.“The one thing I didn't like is how Ministers can duck out of questions saying, ‘I will get back to you.' These systems work depending how committed the members are. There's scope there for improvement.”He said Bermuda needs to see more joint select committees like the one on violent crime recently chaired by Deputy Speaker Randy Horton.“What's most important about them is that it requires members on both sides, and the backbench, to roll up their sleeves sat around a table,” he said.“It enables you to invite people in on various issues to give them a voice so that you can produce a report which can influence policy.“There's scope here for one on health and health insurance. It's a way to let people into the debate.”He said breakthroughs in technology will also allow bills to be posted online, which would allow the public to view and make comments, while Hansard could be published on a website.“All this is going to improve the quality of governance and bring about the kind of transparency that's got to be in place,” he said. “The legislature has got to raise its game in that respect and marshall resources to make itself more effective.”