It’s business as normal for the Progressive Labour Party as it dismisses the emergence of new political party One Bermuda Alliance (OBA) as “a non-issue.”Most PLP politicians and supporters have today played down the significance of the merger between the United Bermuda Party (UBP) and the Bermuda Democratic Alliance (BDA).They say the OBA will mean “very little,” adding that the new party won’t be much of a threat to the PLP at the next general election. They are calling it a “reunion of the UBP” rather than a merger, comparing the OBA to “a new wine in an old bottle.”The UBP and the BDA have not yet been dissolved and nothing has been officially signed to say the amalgamation has taken place. But Bermuda is expected to return to a two party country before the House of Assembly resumes on May 13.UBP MP John Barritt will initially lead the OBA and he yesterday said the new party would “work together to do what is best for Bermuda.”Mr Barritt said voters were looking for change and the PLP should be happy to “see signs of positive development on the political scene.”But PLP public relations officer Curtis Williams branded the new political party a “non-issue” as it means so little to the PLP.He said the “reuniting of the UBP and BDA” included “the same people, in the same Parliamentary seats as have been there since 2007.”Mr Williams said: “The reunited UBP will not have any effect on the business of the PLP as nothing has changed. The BDA MPs have simply gone back home and changed the name of the house. The PLP and Premier Cox are solely focused on the many challenges that are currently facing our community and will not be distracted by the UBP reunion and name change.“The Premier’s standing in the community is sound and Bermudians know and see that she is working hard for Bermuda.”PLP MP Ashfield DeVent said the PLP would simply continue to serve the country. He said: “A rose by any other name is still a rose. This party is nothing new. There is going to be no change for us. We don’t see it as two parties combining. It’s like a husband and wife who break up then get back together. This is a party that’s had a break, they had a little falling out and now they are trying to mend their differences.”Mr DeVent, an MP for Pembroke South East, added that he didn’t think there would be “much new and exciting” about OBA.He said: “As nothing has officially been announced, we don’t yet know who really is in charge, what their plan is and what direction they will go in. Only time will tell.”Former Premier and PLP MP Alex Scott said he wasn’t too worried about the “re-emergence of the UBP” especially during the party’s “honeymoon period.”He said: “It’s a reconstruction of the UBP with the addition a few very new BDA members.“It will be business as usual for the PLP. As far as the PLP and its political base are concerned, I don’t think that’s going to change dramatically. In recent years that political base had held firm and I don’t see that changing.”The Warwick South East MP predicts the early days of the OBA will see several politicians “jostling” for the new party’s top jobs. He said: “The question is can they get themselves in order to campaign for a general election in a short period of time? The answer is probably not. Their best shot will be future elections.”But Mr Scott added that the country was “moving into a new era” with uncertainty over the economy, crime and health.He added: “The PLP shouldn’t underestimate this new construct. It has to make the Opposition stronger. We should take these politicians seriously and shouldn’t write them off. We’ll just have to see if the new political muscle will cause ripples and see how the voting public reacts.”Former PLP Senator Walton Brown said: “The UBP have just rejoined together and changed its name. It’s the same Opposition party, I don’t see any difference, positive or negative.“Every political party obviously represents a certain threat, but nothing that’s been reported so far shows that there is going to be any drastic change.“We will have to assess their performance and objectives, then if something does come up we can reassess the situation.”However political commentator and PLP supporter Jonathan Starling said the “reunification of two UBP factions” could capitalise on people’s disappointment with the PLP.He said: “I think they have a lot of potential at the moment, but it really depends on how they play their hand from now and what the PLP does from now on. People are upset with the PLP, and the PLP’s base is far from happy with the current situation. I wouldn’t have thought this a year ago but, quite honestly, unless the PLP gets their act together pretty quick, I wouldn’t be at all surprised if the Opposition were able to form the next Government.”Mr Starling said the new party was “old wine in a new bottle” but said it didn’t have to be if they worked together to become “a very new entity” putting pressure on the PLP. To do this he believes the OBA needs to tackle the race/class issue and convince the public of a “more economically stable environment.”He said: “I do look forward to seeing if they can contribute to a better level of politics than we’ve had so far. We’ve seen the PLP can govern as well as, and as bad as (and in some ways better and worse than) the UBP did.”Guilden Gilbert, who describes himself as “a lukewarm PLP supporter”, also questioned whether the combined entity would be more effective than the UBP, but he believes Bermuda is ready for a new governing party.He said: “I thought the BDA had the potential to eventually become a valid choice for the voters and I think they have given up the fight too soon and this could be reflected in the poll numbers as we move forward.“Some may see this merger as a sign that a third political party is not viable in Bermuda, I firmly disagree with this position as I think this merger is more a case of impatience on the part of the BDA. The fact remains that if the BDA remained as a party it would have killed off the UBP and being able to ably compete for the seat of Government, the UBP needs this merger more than the BDA.”Mr Gilbert added that the PLP changed with the election of Paula Cox as leader and the party was immediately given “a softer look.”He said: “Ms Cox, from what I know of her, is not going to focus her attention on berating the Opposition or get into a game of name calling. She will instead put her head down and focus solely on her task.”When Mr Barritt was asked about being the new leader of the OBA, he said: “Nothing in life is ever certain at least not until that certain something actually happens. That’s the case here, and when there is something definitive to be said, it will be said.”Mr Barritt called comments in yesterday’s Royal Gazette by PLP chairman Anthony Santucci “nasty and vituperative.”He said: “What we have here is a group of Bermudians, young and old, experienced and not so experienced, trying to work together to do what is best for Bermuda.“We believe what we are trying to do is a good start to the sort of change the people of Bermuda are looking for when it comes to politics and political parties.“I would have thought then that the PLP and Government would be happy to see signs of positive development on the political scene.”