when she declared on Friday that Bermuda shorts would soon be making their debut in the House of Assembly.

Ms Webb, who broke one Parliamentary tradition when she wore trousers in the House on Friday, claimed Speaker Stanley Lowe would soon end another by allowing members to wear the traditional Bermuda shorts and long socks.

Not so, according to other MPs, who say this long debated question must first be discussed by the House committee on rules and privileges before the Speaker and the rest of the House can decide on how they wish to dress.

Whether Ms Webb is correct or not, the question will undoubtedly resurface. Of course, what Members of Parliament wear while they are meeting is irrelevant to the good government of the Island. MPs will make the same decisions and vote in the same ways whether they are in morning suits or bathing suits.

But many people will undoubtedly agree with United Bermuda Party veteran C.V.

(Jim) Woolridge, who said in Saturday's newspaper that having been honoured with election, MPs should respect the traditions of the House. And by dressing respectably, Members of Parliament are in effect showing their respect to the people who represent them as well and showing that they respect the seriousness of the task before them.

But Bermuda shorts would not unduly diminish the decorum of the House of Assembly and perhaps this is a case of the PLP -- some of whose members dislike the shorts with their "colonial'' overtones -- being able to do what the UBP dared not.

Premier's residence The news in today's newspaper that Premier Jennifer Smith is to take up what is for now temporary residence in `The Laurels' should be welcomed.

This newspaper has already come out in support of the idea that the Premier should have a permanent residence. The Laurels, the former residence of the Attorney General, is in many ways very suitable for that role.

The Premier already has a residence at nearby Camden for hosting official functions, but it has been long agreed that Camden is unsuitable as a live-in residence.

The Laurels is a secure, centrally-located home which should enable the Premier to host smaller functions and to have a private residence which suits her needs. The fact that it is Government-owned should prevent a repeat of the unseemly row with former Premier Pamela Gordon over the cost of improvements to the home she leased on taking office.

At the same time, the fact that The Laurels, while by no means humble, is a relatively moderate home, sends the right signal to the public that the Government is not creating "an imperial Premiership'' and intends to keep a close eye on Government spending. That is a message which all taxpayers will welcome.