A special watchdog body to control monopolies was yesterday backed by Bermuda's smallest political party.

And the National Liberal Party's Graeme Outerbridge said a UK-style Monopolies and Mergers Commission could be a useful tool in protecting consumers from price gouging.

Mr. Outerbridge said: "It might be an excellent idea and we need to look at whether we need legislation to control the pricing policies of some of these monopolies.'' He added: "It all comes down to the critical issue of what is fair. The role of any Government must be aimed at finding the fulcrum of balance for fairness.

"The NLP believes that there is an urgent need to examine the issues of monopolies in Bermuda's economy and to develop legislation and policies to make sure that things remain fair in pricing and services for such businesses.'' Mr. Outerbridge said that controversy surrounding the ending of BTC's local phone monopoliy was "deeply troubling''.

And he predicted BTC having to face competition would -- like Cable & Wireless in the international phone market -- mean job losses.

He added: "Government policy may produce higher prices for individual consumers but lower prices for businesses.

"This issue is a high challenge for the new Government -- the management at BTC must chart a new course and not simply pass huge cost increases along to consumers.

"Government must be certain that creating competition does not destroy a utility that is vital to Bermuda's telecommunications needs and services.'' But Mr. Outerbridge said the issue of monopolies affected several areas of business in Bermuda.

He added: "We have monopolies in the energy business, in wholesale, shipping policy, organised labour monopolies, the stevedoring business and in retail.'' But Mr. Outerbridge said Government policy was "lacking'' in addressing "the interests of the Bermuda people''.

He added: "The actions of Belco buying Bermuda Gas and Dunkley's Dairy having a stranglehold on Bermuda's milk supply are recent events that need to be re-examined, as should the wider issues of monopolies in Bermuda.'' Mr. Outerbridge admitted the small size of Bermuda meant that a single firm controlling a large share of any market was sometimes an economic necessity.

He said: "The scale of our economy means a market can't be cut up into small pieces and remain viable.'' But he insisted: "We would like to see the issues examined from an economic point of view and from the point of view of checks and balances so these monopolies are run as fairly as possible on both sides.'' Graeme Outerbridge Graphic file name: GRAEE