The Association of Bermuda Insurers and Reinsurers (ABIR), which represents 22 global insurance and reinsurance companies with substantial underwriting operations on the Island, now employ 1,700 people in Bermuda including more than 1,100 Bermudians (citizens, spouses of citizens and PRC’s).Our annual economic impact survey published in The Royal Gazette on May 22 showed that ABIR companies directly contribute nearly $1 billion to the local economy; spin-off benefits compound that number. By spin-off benefits we mean items such as payroll for the consulting, accounting and legal firms we use; jobs for restaurant wait staff, hotel housekeepers and taxi drivers; and jobs for building managers and maintenance staff for the office space we rent.An op-ed piece that appeared in The Royal Gazette on September 12 questioned some of the conclusions we drew from this data. We stand by our research. For example, there is indeed a “direct correlation between these senior executives being in Bermuda and employment opportunities for Bermudians.” As we said in our May report: “Most worrisome is that the five ABIR members with historically the largest number of employees in Bermuda have reduced their employment during that time by an average of 23 percent. For these same companies, their average reduction in Bermudian employees is 19.6 precent.”Overall, we documented the clear five-year trend that our employee headcount in Bermuda is declining. When executives and their families leave Bermuda, it impacts other jobs not only at the company itself but also jobs in the wider Bermudian economy (such as supermarkets, retailers, restaurants and taxis). Unfortunately for Bermuda, contrary to the September 12 op-ed piece, the facts are not fiction at all — as many Bermudians are feeling the effects in a very real and painful way.Our business here is being affected by internal factors — some old, some new — including the overall cost of doing business in Bermuda, work permit requirements and residency restrictions on executives. There are also external factors impacting our business including industry consolidation, enhanced regulatory requirements, and tax threats from the US. ABIR works cooperatively with the Bermuda Government on many of these matters and ABIR will continue to lead the effort on these important matters.In addition to the above, over the next several years, a number of critical factors could come together to increase the attractiveness of Bermuda for international insurers and reinsurers as a location for their senior management teams.The four factors we see converging to make this improved outlook possible include: 1) the European Union’s forthcoming grant of equivalence to Bermuda for its Solvency II regime (the Bermuda Monetary Authority with CEO Jeremy Cox and his team have led a successful initiative in this area); 2) the defeat of the discriminatory reinsurance tax in the US and settling of a number of corporate tax issues by the new US Congress; 3) work permit relief for senior executives in Bermuda as well as implementation of an amended Incentives for Job Maker’s Act; and 4) Bermuda’s continued expanded engagement on the world stage via agreements and conformance with additional international IAIS regulatory, OECD tax co-operative and transparency agreements, and WTO related trade standards.Bermuda’s underpinnings with the UK legal system, a US dollar economy, and maintenance of a strong financial standing go without saying as being part of the essential foundation of our business here. Since international insurance and reinsurance is fundamental to our economy, for Bermuda, the essential question is: how do we all work together to make these accomplishments come true?As a Bermudian, my career and my family have benefited from a growing and flourishing international insurance and reinsurance industry in Bermuda. I began working in this industry almost 30 years ago; have worked also at the BMA and now have worked for ABIR for six years. This industry has provided me a great professional opportunity and it has done so for many other Bermudians as well — I work with them every day.I believe there should be a bipartisan consensus that we do what we need to do to make the international insurance and reinsurance industry once again thrive here in Bermuda. Let’s make it a national, bipartisan priority.Leila Madeiros is senior vice president and deputy director of ABIR.