MPs last night passed a bill that will give courts the power to fine drug offenders up to $1 million and impose sentences of between ten years and life.

The Misuse of Drug Amendment Act 2005 was introduced by Minister of Health and Family Services, Patrice Minors and will make changes to the original Act dating from 1972.

But the Opposition believes this ?fine and confine? law will only place drug mules in prison while ?Mr. Big? is allowed to continue doing business.

Under the new legislation, courts will have the power to increase sentences and fines for drug offenders from $1 million or life imprisonment, to $500,000 or ten years. The courts will also have a choice to sentence offenders to three times the street value of the controlled drug, whichever is greater, or impose both a fine and imprisonment.

Ms Minors told the House of Assembly that offenders were considered suppliers if they were found with more than one gram of heroin, one gram of cocaine, 20 grams of cannabis or four tablets of ecstasy.

She said the period of imprisonment in default of payment the fine would also increase and run consecutive ? as opposed to concurrent ? to their original period of imprisonment: For a fine not exceeding $300,000, a period of three years in default; for a fine exceeding $300,000, four years in default; for a fine exceeding $600,000 a period of five years imprisonment; and for a fine exceeding $900,000 a six year imprisonment in default.

Ms Minors told the House that during the last three years, Police confiscated drugs entering Bermuda with a street value of $80 million.

It?s estimated that this is only 10 percent of the drugs that make their way onto the streets.

?As the fight against drug dealing continues in Bermuda and around the world, the laws that support that fight need to be constantly modernised,? she said.

The new legislation will allow discounts for assistance in cases where a person is charged with an offence under this Act and then offers assistance, but the discount will not exceed 50 percent of the basic sentence.

In a case other than that for which he has been charged, the person may be rewarded with a discount not exceeding 75 percent of the basic sentence.

In this lies the problem, according to the Shadow Minister of Labour, Home Affairs and Public Safety, Maxwell Burgess, who told the House that drug mules should be given every opportunity to ?snitch on Mr. Big? ? even after being sentencing.

He said there was no way these drug mules could pay fines in excess of $300,000.

?I want us to be in the position to say to Mr. Small Fry, you get me Mr. Big now and I?ll go after him and forego the fine and time. At that point, when that person is ready to talk, we have to have the legislation in place to give that person a discount and get the fellow we want,? he said.

He said Government would not ?break the back of this business? until the small fry led them to the bigger fish.

Many members of the House agreed that the legislation was in effect a deterrent to the courier, but did not help lead Police to ?Mr. Big?.

Shadow Minister of Health and Family Services Michael Dunkley said not only should the Government talk tough and act tough, but it needed success in what it was doing.

He outlined one of the problems he saw with the bill. This included the disparity between the fines proposed and the amount of drugs mules were bringing in. Unless Mr. Big paid the fine the drug mules would simply go to jail.

?That?s the reality of the situation,? he said.

He added that a number of people bringing drugs into Bermuda came from a standard of living where the money offered to them to bring the drugs into the country was a tremendous amount and worth the risk.

?You can ask people in our prison system, ask former prisoners about imprisonment in Bermuda and see if it?s a deterrent for doing that crime. What they will tell you is that they don?t mind taking that gamble because when they?re incarcerated they go to the Westgate Hotel,? he said.

He said these offenders would take the time as opposed to the fine and if Government came forward with these fines, the risk involved of being sent to Westgate was minimal.

?They will do the time even if Mr. Big does not step forward. As soon as they get an opportunity Mr. Big has already made that phone call to them to say...hey, excuse me Johnny Blow, but your mouth is sealed or else,? he said.

He said while the Opposition supported the intent of the bill, Government still needed to do a lot more housekeeping to get its House in order if they wanted to be successful in the war on drugs in Bermuda.

?Drugs have moved into every part of society and while we might stand here and say that we?re not effected by it, I know in time everyone will be,? he said.