promised to try and set up the scheme by the January 2000 deadline, Finance Minister Eugene Cox said yesterday.

And Pension Commission chairman Roger Titterton said the first orders of business would be education on the pension plan and talks about setting up a special advisory group.

But Mr. Titterton admitted: "It's going to be a very difficult job to get it done.'' Mr. Titterton, however, pledged that the Commissioner would work as hard as possible to have the pension plan ready for operation on January 1 next year.

The two were speaking yesterday after a special forum at the Bermuda Underwater Exploration Institute for interested parties from business leaders to trades unions.

Mr. Cox said: "Some of the concerns expressed were things like people feeling there should have been much earlier consultation and that there wasn't enough input from the stakeholders.'' And he said one example at the forum was someone who did not realise the five percent contribution rate would be phased in over several years -- not imposed in a lump.

He added: "There are a lot of people like that and we need to establish a rapport. But the forum has been very useful and I'm happy with the way things went.'' Mr. Cox added that expert consultants from Canada hired by the previous Government would be retained in the run-up to the pension scheme's implementation.

He said: "We want to get off on the right foot and get the expertise we do not have here -- having consultants, certainly initially, is the best way to go.'' Mr. Titterton will be backed up by ex-Bermuda Public Services Association chief Eugene Blakeney as deputy chairman and seven other Commission members.