in the last two days which indicated that the Island is making some progress in assuring the world's leading economies that it is a legitimate and clean business centre and not a tax haven.

An announcement by the French Government that Bermuda is not on a list of jurisdictions where financial controls are lacking is particularly good news and demonstrates that the Island is perceived differently from the Cayman Islands and other countries.

Because the French Government, and presumably other European Union members are not far behind, is threatening to boycott countries which cannot get their houses in order, Bermuda's absence from the list is important.

However, this does not mean the Island is out of the woods. France's focus was primarily on money laundering where Bermuda has stringent regulations and few offshore banks used as the primary funnels by drug dealers and other criminals.

The more problematic issue for Bermuda lies over the question of tax evasion and what constitutes tax avoidance.

Here Bermuda probably has some work to do when the distinction will often be perceived differently depending on where you live.

But the Government's decision announced in today's newspaper that tax evasion will be included in the Proceeds of Crime Act, alongside the clarification of disclosure questions in the US-Bermuda Tax Treaty should go some way to easing concerns overseas.

The devil will be in the details on tax policy and Bermuda has to take care not to lean so far towards the standards of major nations "keen to claw back lost tax revenue'' that international business sees no purpose in remaining on the Island. The same applies to disclosure requirements where the risk of "fishing expeditions'' by overseas tax authorities remains very real.

There is still plenty of work to be done. But it is good to see that Government, despite its silence, has not been idle and has been pushing Bermuda's image as a model jurisdiction.

It is also good to see Premier Smith dismiss the idea that Independence is some kind of panacea to the problems of the OECD and EU blacklists.

She says, rightly: "Independence is a little beside the point in the event some kind of blacklist was published. It would harm the business of an offshore financial centre whether it was independent or not.'' This does not mean that Independence is completely out of the question for Bermuda in the wake of the British White Paper. Britain's requirements that Bermuda get in line with the UK on some policy issues still have to be weighed against the advantages of citizenship and continued close ties with the UK.

But on the single question of the Island's financial reputation, Ms Smith is right.