after she claimed they would not be given a voice if a constitutional conference was held.

She was charged with being deliberately deceitful for telling a public meeting this week that the people would be better served by attending the House of Assembly debate on proposed changes to the Constitution today.

Opposition MP Allan Marshall, who spoke at Government's final public meeting in Sandys on Wednesday, said if a conference was held the terms of reference could be written to suit Bermuda's needs.

If Government and everyone concerned, including delegates from Britain, wanted the people to be heard, then the terms of reference could provide for them, whether submissions were made in person or writing, he said.

And the Shadow Minister of Development and Opportunity said besides the fact that people work and may not be able to attend Parliament today, members of the public were not able to speak their opinions in the House.

Mr. Marshall said: "The Premier has got to be a little more open about this.

"She said the people's representatives in the House will debate it for them, and speak on their behalf, but there has not been one vote in the House that has gone against the PLP Government.

"It is my understanding that the terms of reference for a constitutional conference can be drawn so we can enable the people to make submissions detailing their priorities or concerns.

"I think the Premier has been a little misleading in her comments.

"The United Bermuda Party is not against changes to the constitution, but is it right to bulldoze ahead with a new system that may have flaws and imbalances?'' He said a constitutional conference should be held so the issue could be debated away from the political arena, but with the experience of overseas delegates.

And he said Government should take note of the Jenkins Report, commissioned by the British Government, which studied the pros and cons of single seat constituencies.

Yesterday, a Foreign Office spokeswoman in London said it would not be prepared to comment on public input at a conference because Britain had made it clear that no commitment had yet been made to have a conference.

She added: "If there was to be a conference, the terms of reference would have to be made on how it was run.

"In the past, constitutional conferences have not had public involvement, but I must say that is considerable years ago.'' At the meeting on Wednesday, Attorney General Dame Lois Browne Evans said Government's three public meetings on the proposals had not been held to encourage people to vote against a conference, but instead to explain to the public what the changes would be and why a conference was not needed.

And the Premier said besides a conference proving very expensive for the British Government, it would delay the whole process of introducing a more modern constitution, and could result in Government being unable to use the census information currently being compiled.

And Minister Alex Scott told the audience that people should not be surprised that Government wanted to change the Constitution because the PLP had talked about it at every general election since the party's inception.

Many members of the audience said they were in favour of change and were happy to accept Government's proposals to alter the Constitution without a conference or referendum.

And many said they were eager to see the changes take place sooner, rather than later, one man stating: "Please get it right, but don't take all night.'' However, there were also calls for Government to take their time and consult more with the public, particularly over the reduction in the number of MPs.

GOVERNMENT GVT