has done Bermuda the great disservice of distracting everyone from major social problems which need addressing.

We need to focus all the attention we can on the problems created in this society by illegal drugs. In our view the problem is not yet out of control but it will be if we do not muster the community's will to fight drugs. It is not a problem which any of us can afford to leave to others. There are any number of examples of other communities and other islands which have been virtually destroyed by drugs. All it takes is a Government which turns a blind eye or gives the impression of being permissive.

A major factor in the decline of tourism in other resorts has been crime, which is often connected with drugs. Bermuda has a long reputation for being remarkably free of violent crimes. But Bermuda is not today as crime free as most Bermudians would like and violent crimes seem to be more prevalent. We think some of this comes about because the Progressive Labour Party gave every appearance of being tolerant towards drugs. However that is certainly not the total answer. There are social factors which lead to crime which a rich and successful place like Bermuda ought to be able to eradicate. We should not be distracted from giving attention to those areas.

In the United States there is growing concern about the breakdown of families resulting in single parent households and children who have children out of wedlock. So far these factors do not seem to have become a major concern in Bermuda but they should be. They are a part of the picture which can lead to drug abuse and crime and other anti-social behaviour.

We were interested recently in some figures supplied by the National Liberal Party showing that in the United States 250 judges who hear juvenile cases gave the following reasons for juvenile delinquency: single parents and family breakdown topped the list with 26 percent; drugs, 21 percent; no jobs 17 percent; poor housing 15 percent; poor education, seven percent; all other factors were at five percent with the don't knows at nine percent.

We would suspect that the pattern is not so different in Bermuda except perhaps for the no jobs and housing categories which are generally much better here. We were very interested in how low the US judges ranked poor education given the time, effort and money Bermuda is investing in a revised school system.

All of these factors impact on the Island as a whole. They are important to the quality of life of Bermuda which is a major attraction for both visitors and international companies. Yet there is often a temptation not to face important social considerations because they are difficult or controversial and sometimes we do not face them because there are racial conotations. But the truth is that we are devoting a great deal of time and effort to considering Independence and nothing could be more difficult or controversial than that.