Plans to relax foreign exchange controls may include altering the foreign money purchase tax, Sen. Grant Gibbons UBP revealed in the Senate adjournment debate yesterday.

Sen. Gibbons was addressing an Opposition claim that Government's bid to lift foreign exchange controls "terrified'' voters.

He did not want to preempt the Finance Minister's Budget announcement this Monday. But he said the plans were complex and there was more to them than the PLP thought.

They may well involve relaxing the foreign currency purchase tax and lifting interest rate ceilings as well, he said.

Explaining the reasoning behind the move, he said: "A family can get permission to take out (US) $25,000 to blow in Disney World. But if you take out (US)$2,000 to invest abroad you will be taxed 10 percent.'' That was no incentive to Bermudians to save, he said.

When it came to savings plans, Bermuda was "way behind the ball game''.

"That's why a number of people choose to put their money in real estate,'' he said.

Sen. Lawrence Scott UBP began the debate by raising personal concerns over a growing number of youngsters he had seen riding peddle bikes at night without lights or reflectors.

He urged parents to educate their kids on the laws of the road to avoid Police prosecution.

He added: "Such action by youngsters is more dangerous than illegal''. Sen.

Neletha Butterfield PLP said it was time Rev. Trevor Woolridge MP was congratulated for his efforts in securing scholarships for a number of Bermudian students to attend Allen University abroad.

But there were still many youngsters in Bermuda in need of an education who were unemployed and unskilled. Often their parents were also unemployed, she said. A "plan of action'' was needed to keep kids falling through the cracks.

Sen. Butterfield expressed disappointment that Government had dropped the Works Ministry jobs scheme so soon after Bermuda began pulling out of recession.

There were still many collecting social assistance who would benefit by the scheme.

Sen. Alf Oughton Ind. said he too felt Government's dropping of the jobs scheme was untimely.

He believed that many of those on social assistance would prefer to be working.

Sen. Yvette Swan UBP focussed her remarks on growing violence against women, particularly those who worked nights at local shops and restaurants.

A number of women had been attacked by robbers recently while working at after-hours businesses.

Even women walking with their boyfriends were being targetted.

She urged people to be all the more careful when leaving their homes, especially if they were walking on the roads.

Sen. Terry Lister started a heated argument over the Independence issue, claiming Government did not have the people's mandate to push towards it.

Government's plans to lift foreign exchange controls and examine Independence were at the forefront, but the 100 promises made in its election Blueprint remained on the backburner, he claimed.

"That is shocking,'' the senator said. "These issues have been created by various people in Government without actually going to the people for a mandate,'' Sen. Lister said.

Many would have been too "terrified'' to vote for Government if it had mentioned relaxing foreign exchange controls in the October election run-up, he charged.

"I've tried to figure out who it can help,'' he said.

Only two percent of the local population would benefit by being able to take $50,000 amounts out of the Country virtually tax-free, he claimed.

"I hope Government will enlighten as soon as possible as to what benefits this Country, and I mean the broad masses, will get from the action,'' he said.

After his remarks on the drug search of prison guards (see Page 1), Sen.

Lister asked for an update on education reform plans for Berkeley Institute, which he is associated with.

He also expressed dismay at the cost of the new senior secondary school at Prospect, which is to be Bermuda's largest high school.

It was decided to allow Berkeley to remain a secondary school and convert the rest of the Island's public schools into middle schools.

"We are still in the dark as to just what is happening to our school,'' he said. "We are anxious to know how much money is going to be spent on upgrading it.'' He urged the Education Ministry to outline its plans for the two senior secondary schools now.

Sen. the Hon. Michael Winfield charged the PLP was showing "continued hypocrisy'' on the issue of Independence.

He said a mandate from the people was not needed to garner information on the subject of Independence and what it means for Bermuda -- which was exactly what Government was doing in ordering a Commission of Inquiry.

He denied Government was "going forward with Independence as stated in much of the media''.

The Commission of Inquiry would look at the issues surrounding Independence and would report back to the people.

He found it "depressing'' the PLP was trying to gain political mileage out of the issue by "creating mischief''.

"No mandate is required to provide information,'' he said.

Sen. Milton Scott PLP spoke on growing violence in local schools.

Teachers were being intimidated -- even threatened by school kids.

A number of students were also facing intimidation at the hands of fellow pupils.

"Threats are being made against teacher's personal safety,'' the Bermuda Union of Teachers official said.

"What is also being noticed is the inability of schools to deal with this problem.'' The infrastructure for dealing with behavioural problems among school kids was not in place. And if it was not implemented soon, he said: "Teachers would be forced to use the legal system to deal with problems usually dealt with in the schools.'' Sen. Scott repeated a call for a "national team'' to address the base closures, expressing dissatisfaction that Premier the Hon. Sir John Swan had left the PLP out of the base committees.

On the issue of Independence, he said: "Many Bermudians do not want Independence John Swan style.'' Going by the comments made in the House last Friday, UBP MPs "were willing to send Bermuda down the drain''.

Sen. Gibbons, after tackling the foreign exchange control issue, assured the base committee which he chaired and the other committees looking into the foreign base closures, intended to include the opinions and help of "a broad section of Bermudians''.

Any team in which politics was included would "be a disaster from the word go'', he said, responding the PLP's claim its members should be represented on the committees.

Government Senate leader and Environment Minister Sen. Gerald Simons concluded the debate by giving assurances that a sunken Russian nuclear sub leaking radioactive material 500 miles off Bermuda was no threat to the Island.

The news the sub was leaking radioactivity should encourage Bermudians to support a proposal to conduct an oil burning experiment off Bermuda.

Bermuda should take advantage of all opportunities for scientific information made available to it.

He hoped PLP MP Rev. Trevor Woolridge -- who opposes the experiment because of the likely damage Bermuda would suffer if anything went wrong -- was planning to attend Government briefings on the proposal last night and today.

He invited Sen. Butterfield to give him the names of any Bermudians unable to afford college but who wanted to pursue a degree.