The PLP's Shadow Minister for Tourism, Mr. David Allen, told the House during Friday's Throne Speech debate that his party has concerns about the new St.

George's cruise ship.

Mr. Allen read aloud from Boston newspaper reports about Boston-Bermuda Cruising Ltd. principal Mr. Arnold Mende's past business exploits.

"We want the ship to succeed,'' but the Minister "dallied so long'' before signing a deal that the Old Town was now "behind the eight ball.'' Mr. Woolridge was "too quick to hurl invective'' and should not have engaged in public and personal attacks on Carnival Cruise Line president Mr. Bob Dickinson.

Mr. Allen said he understood Government was looking at making the Tourism Department a quango so that Mr. Woolridge could be made "a figurehead'' without direct control. But the PLP would fight that, because the department had to remain under direct scrutiny of Parliament.

Tourism challenges included the fact the North American Free Trade Agreement would increase tourism to Mexico and the fact Cuba would still open up to tourism.

Dr. David Dyer (UBP) picked up a copy of the PLP campaign platform "Plan for the '90s,'' and referred to it as "the Plan for the '80s.'' "We've heard it all before,'' Dr. Dyer said.

There was "a modicum of truth'' when the PLP referred to the UBP as "a caretaker Government,'' because the UBP was repeatedly elected and did take care of the people of Bermuda, he said.

Bermudians did not understand the PLP and did not believe they could govern, Dr. Dyer said.

Two weeks ago, when the Speaker of the House was elected, Opposition Leader Mr. Frederick Wade said "experience'' was the most important thing. But, "what experience of Government have the Progressive Labour Party ever had? "If you believe in something, surely you have to follow through on it. You can't say you believe in something on one occasion and not believe in it on another occasion.'' Dr. Dyer accused the PLP of running "a late night campaign'' in the lead-up to the recent election, in which the party sent people out "trying to persuade young blacks to vote for the PLP purely on the grounds of race.'' But the PLP could "play this thing both ways,'' he said.

The PLP had also sent out conflicting signals on the Tynes Bay Incinerator and Government's fishpot ban, he said. "The only environmentally friendly thing about the PLP is that everything they say is recyclable,'' he said. "We've heard it all before.'' The Opposition party said it played a role in fighting to keep the US Naval Air Station in Bermuda, but historically demanded the Americans pay rent.

Dr. Dyer said the PLP criticised task forces, but had taken part in them itself.

Shadow Finance Minister Mr. Eugene Cox had not explained why, as chairman of the public accounts committee, he had failed to provide the House with the public accounts.

He recalled Mr. Cox's comment that a magazine picture of Finance Minister the Hon. David Saul made him look like a mugger. Referring to his own defeat in the Speaker of the House contest, he said: "The only person who has been mugged recently is myself, and I was mugged by 18 members of the PLP. Those were the ones I could readily identify.'' He warned Bermudians would have to "box cleverly'' in the next five to 10 years to keep the Country competitive.

On the question of violence, he was not sure whether it was increasing or being publicised more. Women were more ready to report abuse in the home and the courts were more sympathetic. Better sentences were needed, however.

He praised education restructuring, saying it would produce young people better equipped for the jobs market. Entry into Bermuda College would also be easier, he said.

Government had also put a lot of effort into helping less well-off students.

It would try to get even more students into higher education. And more pre-school places would also be provided.

A new education act was being drafted, he added.

Mr. Stanley Morton (PLP) responded to accusations of election "high jinks'' made against the Opposition by Dr. Saul last week.

He was the Opposition politician who approached the Postmaster General about distribution of election leaflets, he revealed.

He just went to ask for information, he said, and had not tried to "get a free one from Government''.

He was glad a Royal Gazette story had put the record straight, he said.

He began speaking about people "infringing on Government funds'', Ministers using Government cars, and "members working with Government departments who have taken trips'', but was interrupted by Health and Social Services Minister the Hon. Quinton Edness .

Mr. Edness said Mr. Morton had broken a rule about "imputing improper motives'' to MPs by accusing Ministers of misusing Government funds.

Mr. Morton said he had been asking if a Minister was able to give statements about any member who had used a Government car for personal reasons. Trips had been arranged in such a way as to "get their holidays at the same time'', he suggested.

He challenged Mr. Edness to investigate his Ministry. "Members of the Government department'' had paved voters' driveways free of charge before elections, he said.

Votes had been bought in his own constituency of Pembroke East Central in such a way.

In response to charges that the PLP was inexperienced, he said the UBP had been inexperienced until it got into Government.

He condemned Government for giving posts to young men with no experience and overlooking MPs with experience like Mrs. Grace Bell . Dr. Dyer had been willing to become Speaker with no experience, he said.

He said new UBP MP Mr. Richard Spurling was a qualified man, but Government had tucked him into the corner of the House. This was because Mr. Spurling had got into trouble for refusing to "lambast'' and tell "untruths'' about the PLP in an election Press conference, he said.

The Government was misinterpreting the people, Mr. Morton added.

It did not understand the relationship between the people and their representatives.

"Love is not something you can buy. It's something people must feel. You must exude love.'' Human Affairs Minister the Hon. Jerome Dill had said he did not want to use a sledgehammer to solve racial problems.

"Perhaps he doesn't know how hard the heads are he's dealing with, even in his own camp. He may have to use a jackhammer.'' Dr. Dyer had accused Mr. Cox of not providing a report. But it was not Mr.

Cox's job to write it, Mr. Morton said. Government had deprived the Auditor of funds and produced the "hiccups''.

The PLP wanted constitutional reform, abolishing the residents vote, giving all votes equal value, reducing the number of MPs, making parish councils elected and introducing a code of ethics for Cabinet.

"We have members in certain businesses in this Country, and yet they are in certain positions in Government, who are privy to information that perhaps could be very beneficial.

"And it could be easily interpreted by many persons, at times, that information is transported in a very secretive way to enhance the personal position of certain individuals.'' Mr. Edness condemned Mr. Morton for his "vicious'' allegations. Government spent a great many hours trying to work out difficulties for people and improve the lives of every citizen.

"When they hurt, we hurt. When they bleed, we bleed.'' He again called for the Speaker to make Mr. Morton withdraw the "very serious allegation'' that Government Ministers "misused Government funds''.

"We have a Government free of graft. We have a Government that has a reputation of absolutely not misusing funds. We have a Government that has all kinds of stringent exercises to ensure that the Government doesn't misuse funds.'' Government did not treat different districts differently. Some areas had specific problems that would be dealt with.

Pembroke East Central voters often complained their MPs were not representing them, Mr. Edness said.

Turning to Government policies, Mr. Edness said Government had to earn dollars with prudent action, otherwise it could not help people.

He highlighted the planned family court and moves taken to recover maintenance cash from absent fathers. Almost double was now being collected than in 1991.

It was intended to explore other areas, like how to discover a father's true assets. Another possibility was stopping fathers taking trips, although Government did not really want to enter that delicate civil rights issue.

Education was needed so men realised they had to spend time with their children. Absence of a father contributed to delinquency and violence.

Another problem was mothers stopping fathers seeing their kids.

Mr. Edness said the Country should be proud of the social assistance and housing allowance systems' success in helping people through recession.

Government had tried to keep the construction industry going, and he believed new jobs would start in the next four or five months.

Government would continue to boost home ownership, which created a more stable society.

There had been problems opening the new prison due to difficulties with the sub-contractor working on the security system. But the delay was not costing taxpayers a penny.

The new prison would have a more compassionate philosophy, and would more actively try to rehabilitate inmates, which could not be done properly in Casemates.

On crime, Mr. Edness said he was worried about the "new pattern of violence'' among young people, which his Ministry would be looking into.

He called on the PLP to stick to being the Opposition and "let Government be the government''.

Before concluding, he delved into the hot topic of racism.

He felt Mr. Dill was the best person for the job of Human Affairs Minister and handling racism.

You could not get rid of racism with legislation, he said.

And the "pervasive'' inequalities women in Bermuda are facing should not be forgotten.

Mr. Edness said that while he admired Dr. Eva Hodgson for putting race on the front burner, "intelligent people know the other side of her -- she is political''. People fighting for racial equality "set the whole movement back'' by being political, he said.

He urged white people to "get in on the dialogue'', but said he understood their reluctance to do so. They were not treated with respect when making comments, he said.

Shadow Health and Social Services Minister Mr. Nelson Bascome was concerned about what he believed was continued racism and unfairness by employers -- including Government.

He produced a letter from painting contractor Mr. Ramadhin Smith written to the Premier complaining his "black business's' bid to use a new product to fix flat roofs at the airport was turned down. There was no money in the Budget for it, he was told.

But when the distributorship of the product was soon after awarded to another firm, a "white business'', Government took it up on the offer.

"I ask you is that racism..?,'' he said.

Mr. Smith has taken out a writ against the product manufacturer for what he feels was a breach of contract, but is still left with a bitter taste over Government's "favouritism'', Mr. Bascome said.

It was just one of "a number of unfair practices going on in our Country'', he said.

Mr. Bascome went on to chastise Mr. Edness for his handling of recent child abuse allegations at a nursery school.

And he attacked his handling of the new prison, its staffing and programmes.

He claimed budget cuts had reduced the new prison's staff from a planned 92 to 80; prison officers were not happy with the new prison's shift system; rehabilitation programmes were still not in place at the existing prison -- and now the move to the new facility was delayed; and the one prison psychiatrist was working on the transition team, therefore, not available to help inmates.

"We always only hear the glossy exterior of their programmes,'' he said. Mr.

Bascome was also concerned about conditions in the Bermuda Police Force, noting 28 officers had resigned in 1992. He wanted to know why.

Shoplifting increases were also worrying. He felt a review of the whole situation, including a break down of shoplifters, was warranted.

And the new "sandwich generation'', where parents live with their child and his or her children, should be looked at by Government to see what could be done to help such families. Insurance costs for seniors were rising, he noted.

Mr. Bascome said there was "not much'' in the Throne Speech for youngsters.

In fact, one youth services department, the YHED, had its staff cut to just two. And the Reachout Programme had been "scaled down dramatically'', so that "a number of young males were without family placements''.

He wanted to know what Government was doing to replace the Canadian Hotel, one of Bermuda's last single room occupancy facilities.

"Are they going to shuttle all (the homeless with part-time jobs) down to the Salvation Army shelter where they are restricted in their comings and goings?,'' he asked. "The problem needs to be addressed.'' New UBP MP Mr. Tim Smith gave a relatively brief address, saying the PLP was "defeatist'' and had failed to see the promising future for Bermuda in its Throne Speech reply.

He was "inoculated with optimism'' as a new Parliamentarian, he said. "The PLP are attempting to make defeatists of us and all Bermudians,'' he said. "I cannot and will not subscribe to that pessimism.'' The UBP's Blueprint would impact on Bermuda for as many three generations, he said. While the PLP's was vague.

"They did not even describe what `universal use of private cars' meant,'' he noted.

He added while they complained of the hundreds of Bermudian youngsters unable to take advantage of Bermuda College, they failed to note "the thousands of Bermudians who had taken advantage of the college -- and numerous other colleges all over the world''.

The Blueprint intended to provide future security, accomplishment and an essence of community, he said.

And he accused PLP member Mrs. Webb of lifting her recommendations on race "directly out'' of Government's National Drug Strategy.

After patting himself on the back for getting the most votes in the election, PLP MP Mr. Walter Lister , special assistant for Management and Technology, hit out at Government for calling the election while most under-21-year-olds, allowed to vote for the first time on October 5, were abroad at school.

He raised concerns about the cost of medicines for the elderly. "We wandering if Government couldn't look into why medications are so expensive in Bermuda,'' he said.

And he said the UBP's bringing about a "mass influx of imported votes in the 1960s'' was beginning to lose its effect.

"The UBP would not have retained its power all these years had it been a straight Bermudian vote,'' he said.

He added the PLP stood up for blacks as well as whites when they were wronged.

And the "antiquated'' thinking of white people that they can only vote for someone of the same colour was disappearing.

Making his maiden address to the House, Community and Cultural Affairs Minister the Hon. Wayne Furbert invited the PLP to hang Government's Blueprint in their bedrooms, because all of its promises would be carried out.

He outlined plans for the Chamber of Commerce to give guidance to small businesses, and for Hamilton Corporation to work closer with North Hamilton Business Association.

Shadow Community Affairs and Culture Minister Mr. Leon (Jimmy) Williams (PLP), in his maiden speech, called Government's Blueprint a "Madison Avenue slick job''.

"We're going to watch on those promises, and we're going to tick them off one by one.'' All Government's task forces showed it was not capable of managing, he said.

On the pilot anti-drugs group in St. David's, he said local people did not know anything about it, but would like to because they wanted to get involved.

He deplored the Throne Speech's silence on East End bridges and ambulance services.

He hoped Mr. Furbert would not become like the previous Community Affairs Minister the Hon. Leonard Gibbons.

He condemned Mr. Gibbons for lack of achievement, and called for a national cultural centre.

After some banter, during which Mr. Williams accused the Tourism Minister of arrogance and rudeness, Mr. Woolridge declared: "This is war''.

"What have you done since 1963?'' asked Mr. Williams. "It's war on Bermudians.'' The Speaker, the Hon. Ernest DeCouto , intervened to rule on Mr. Edness' complaint about Mr. Morton.

Mr. Morton had committed a rule violation by saying he knew that all Government Ministers were guilty of misusing Government funds, said Mr.

DeCouto. He asked Mr. Morton to withdraw the statement.

Mr. Morton replied that if what he said was interpreted in that way -- and he was sure it was not -- he would withdraw it.

In her maiden speech, Youth, Sport and Recreation Minister the Hon. Pam Gordon compared Shadow Ministers in the PLP election platform with the Opposition's present allocation of portfolios. "They've `X-changed' their own people,'' she said.

Many PLP policies were already being carried out by Government, she said. She replied to charges that the Throne Speech ignored some Government commitments, such as reducing the age of majority and completing the national stadium. Such promises had been in previous throne speeches and repetition was unnecessary.

A proposal to bring down the age of majority would be brought to the House shortly.

"We will ensure that the completion of the stadium will be done in such a manner as to not overly burden the taxpayer.'' Recession had hit the Country, and Government had financial constraints, so there were other priorities.

Schools had to opened up in the evenings to allow safe, supervised play away from drug-pushers.

Ms Gordon gave a fiery response to jibes about the daughter of pioneering social campaigner Dr. E.F. Gordon joining the UBP, saying this would be the only time she would refer to him.

"I don't need my father's legacy. I think I can hold my own when it comes to being in this house.

"Dr. Gordon was a man who had a white mother and a black father. He never worked for black people, he worked for underprivileged, voteless, voiceless masses in this Country.'' Ms Gordon moved that the Throne Speech be adjourned and continued next week.

Opposition leader Mr. Frederick Wade objected strongly but the adjournment was agreed on a 19-16 vote.