Several weeks ago, the Bermuda Independence Commission delivered its final report to Cabinet. While no one except BIC members and Cabinet Ministers knows what the report contains, the United Bermuda Party hopes that BIC has remained true to Premier Scott?s stated objective of a ?comprehensive, fact-finding, analytical and reasoned approach?.

When the PLP Government finally releases the report ? and we don?t understand why it has taken this long ? we anticipate that they will engage in a communications campaign designed to publicise its contents. The United Bermuda Party believes that this communications exercise should be strictly objective and factual. It must set out both the pros and cons of independence for Bermudians, without bias, spin or divisiveness. And it must include a clear and accurate statement of the British Government?s position on the process by which the people of Bermuda can democratically express their view on Independence. Bermudians deserve nothing less, not only because the taxpayer will be footing the bill but also because being fair and factual regarding such a fundamental issue is the right thing to do.

The United Bermuda Party?s approach to the issue of Independence has been consistent and straightforward. First, we believe it?s a decision that should be taken by Bermudian voters themselves ? not by a Premier, not by Cabinet Ministers and not by a political party. And the most effective and least divisive vehicle to ensure that the will of the people prevails is a referendum. Only in that way will every voice be heard and every vote count equally.

A referendum would allow voters to focus exclusively on the pros and cons of independence without the distraction of other political issues ? such as housing, crime and education ? which inevitably arise during a general election. After all, independence for Bermuda is a fundamental decision that should not be taken lightly; it?s a step that, once taken, is irreversible.

Those advocating Independence, such as the Progressive Labour Party, need to make their detailed case for why voters should choose Independence during the run-up to a referendum on the issue. They need to demonstrate how Bermudians would benefit from Independence. They need to show how our lives would change and if our lives would improve. Clearly, the Progressive Labour Party, not Government, should undertake any pro-Independence campaign. It would be completely wrong and inappropriate to use taxpayer?s money to advance the PLP?s political agenda on Independence.

Similarly, those individuals and organisations with other perspectives on Independence would use the same pre-referendum period to advocate their point of view.

In the unlikely event that the results of a referendum show that a significant majority of Bermudians support Independence, then, and only then, should the next step be a General Election. In essence, if there were to be a yes-vote in a referendum, the General Election following it would allow the people of Bermuda to choose which political party they trusted to take the Island to Independence.

This General Election would allow political parties to clarify their positions on how they would take the country to Independence, along with associated considerations such as foreign policy, human rights and economic management of an independent Bermuda. (For example, the PLP?s submission to BIC proposed restrictions on the term of the Auditor General. The United Bermuda Party takes the opposite approach and would opt to protect the strong independence of the Auditor General.) In this way, voters would have the opportunity to compare and vote for different approaches to Independence.

For the PLP to suggest, as they did in their submission to BIC, that the question of Independence must be settled through a General Election because they could not make a detailed case for why Bermuda should go independent in the lead-up to a referendum is nonsense and certainly disrespects the intelligence of Bermudian voters.

It could be that the PLP does not trust its own supporters to toe the party line and vote for independence in a referendum. But why should PLP voters be deprived of their right to separate their personal views on independence from their loyalty to their party?

Referendums are now the accepted way to decide complicated issues of sovereignty and have been used extensively in numerous countries over the last 50 years. According to recent polls taken in Bermuda, a significant majority of Bermudians supports a referendum to decide the issue of Independence. And this preference is evidenced by some 15,000 pro-referendum signatures recently gathered on a petition, which we understand will be submitted to both the Bermuda and UK Governments.

For the Premier and the PLP Government to continue to push for a General Election suggests that they are out of step with and disrespectful of the position of the majority of Bermudians. The United Bermuda Party believes Bermudians deserve better.

Voters have been telling us that instead of focusing time, resources and money on Independence from the UK, Government should be focusing on the significant social problems facing our community.

What we really need is independence for our seniors ? independence from poverty and worries about affordable health care. We need independence from the stress that comes from worrying about affordable housing. We need independence from an inadequate education system that is barely passing 50 percent of our children from secondary school.

Over the last seven years, the PLP Government has consistently failed to deliver on its promises, has squandered millions and millions of dollars, has contributed to the steady deterioration in the social fabric of our community and has refused to take responsibility for any of it. Yes, the people of Bermuda do deserve independence ? independence from a PLP Government that has disrespected them for far too long.Dr. Grant Gibbons is Leader of the Opposition