profile in the UK and Europe, The Royal Gazette can reveal.

Premier Jennifer Smith confirmed last night: "Cabinet has agreed to the hiring of a lobbyist/public relations firm to represent Bermuda in the UK and Europe.'' And Ms Smith ruled out full-time offices for the Bermuda Government in London -- similar to ones operated by the Caymans, Gibraltar and Falkland Islands -- on the grounds the Island already had a strong presence in specific areas.

She said: "The Bermuda Government has representatives for tourism, the Bermuda Society and now the Anglo-Bermuda branch of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association.'' Ms Smith added that Minister of Finance Eugene Cox had already started the search for a suitable firm to push the Island's interests abroad. But later Ms Smith threw a cloak of secrecy over the plan and refused to comment further.

And The Royal Gazette was unable to establish how much Government was prepared to spend on a UK PR representative or if a tender list had been drawn up.

Mr. Cox ducked the issue -- he said he would rather not comment until details of the UK's rewrite with its remaining colonies were revealed in a White Paper to be published next week. He said: "At this point in time, I'd prefer not to talk about anything to do with the British programme until we get the White Paper which is coming out soon.

The use of lobbyists and PR firms to influence opinion among MPs in Britain has been widespread for years -- although not without periodic controversy over their pull with politicians. Bermuda's lack of clout in the UK corridors of power was highlighted by Scots MP Ian Davidson, a member of the UK Parliament Commonwealth Parliamentary Association, which visited Bermuda in January.

Former Conservative MP Rupert Allason, who lost his seat in the British Labour Party's landslide election in 1997, founded the British Bermuda Parliamentary Group -- but it has been inactive for several years.

A new PR/lobbying voice for the Island will come too late to influence the White Paper on Britain's rewrite of its relations with its renamed Overseas Territories. But a new deal could be up and running in time to help influence the Paris-based Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development -- which is currently drawing up a hitlist of dodgy financial jurisdictions.

And -- as the European Union's power increases -- a firm with the contract to fight for Bermuda could help influence Euro-MPs over aims like a single tax structure for Europe.

That could damage Bermuda severely if the EU insists that the Overseas Territories ought to be treated in the same way as mainland Britain.