covering wrecks is passed, conservationists claimed yesterday.

But Government hit back last night, saying the proposed laws will increase protection for wrecks.

The row has blown up over the new Historic Wreck Act 1997 which replaces the 1959 Wreck and Salvage Act and which could be debated in the House of Assembly on Friday.

Ed Harris, the Maritime Museum director and member of the Historic Wreck committee, said the public had been denied the chance to debate the issue in depth.

He also claimed the new legislation did not go as far as laws drafted in 1989, but never passed, and that it could leave Government open to lengthy and expensive legal action.

"In some instances this legislation gives wrecks or a portion of them away.

In other instances Government will have to pay if it wants the wreck,'' said Dr. Harris.

"This Act will not protect the shipwreck, it will protect a person who has been given a licence to explore it. It gives the licence holder an exclusive right to dig up the wreck,'' he added.

Dr. Harris said the legislation could award up to 50 percent of the value of the wreck to the finder -- but it failed to say how the value would be established, exposing Government to the risk of expensive legal cases.

He also said the 1989 draft legislation moved wrecks from the Finance Ministry to the more suitable control of the Department of Cultural Affairs which the latest legislation failed to do.

"They are talking of wrecks as a tourist attraction, yet Government is not making any moves to protect that resource from pilfering and deliberate destruction,'' Dr. Harris said.

"This is a matter of national importance and should not be passed by Parliament in its present form. This is a clear case of giving away Bermuda's national heritage,'' said Dr. Harris.

Bermuda has recently won international recognition in magazines as a top-class wreck resort and last night Finance Minister Grant Gibbons said the new laws gave greater protection to shipwrecks.

Dr. Gibbons added that once legislation was passed, strict regulations governing wrecks would be drawn up -- adding to the increased protection given by the legislation.

In addition, the legislation introduced a $10,000 maximum fine or a year in prison for anyone found breaking the law protecting wrecks.

It also gives Government 100 percent ownership of wrecks, allowing compensation of up to 50 percent for the finder and for strict conditions to be attached on exploration licences, added Dr. Gibbons.

"This Bill provides for substantially more protection than currently exists and allows for the drafting of regulations -- this is not the final product,'' he said. "It sets out clearly that wrecks are owned 100 percent by the Crown and it sets up provision for compensation for the person who discovered the wreck.

"This Bill does not give the wreck away and the fact that compensation is awarded means that people are more likely to declare a find.'' GOVERNMENT GVT MUSEUM MUS