Mr. Speaker: As we begin a new legislative session, the Opposition remains hopeful and vigilant.

Hopeful that the Progressive Labour Party Government will indeed fulfill its repeated Throne Speech pledges of "accountability, transparency and fairness''. Vigilant, lest Bermuda suffer irreparable harm if PLP promises are contradicted by PLP actions.

In last year's Throne Speech, the PLP Government committed to deliver "accountability, transparency and fairness''. I stress these goals because they are fundamentals that the United Bermuda Party strongly embraces. They are basics against which this Government should be measured -- and will be measured by Her Majesty's Loyal Opposition. That is our job and our duty to the people of Bermuda.

Mr. Speaker, the UBP made a commitment last year as well, that I believe is worth repeating today what we said then. We will not criticise for the sake of criticism. We will not condemn for the sake of condemnation.

We are here to serve the people of Bermuda. We will do that by monitoring the Government closely. We will do so by seeking clarity and explanations for the words and actions -- or lack of words or lack of actions -- of the Progressive Labour Party Government.

Mr. Speaker, in guiding our country, the PLP Government's actions will either improve our quality of life, preserve our quality of life, or worsen our quality of life.

The UBP Opposition will work tirelessly to ensure that the Government improves and preserves our quality of life. We will remain vigilant to defend against any PLP actions that threaten to worsen Bermuda's living standards. While the country has much to gain, with a significant misstep, we all have much to lose.

A year is over now. This is the PLP's watch. Their hand has been on the tiller. The time has arrived for the PLP Government to start taking responsibility for what they have done and for what they have left undone.

In the course of the last year the PLP Government has found the time for travel, entertainment and for supporting initiatives that have not benefited the broader community in a tangible way.

The PLP Government has not found the time, however, to seriously address some of the most basic problems this country faces. Housing, public safety, tourism, transportation, care for the elderly, the environment and education -- here is where work needs doing, and where the Government needs to demonstrate performance.

The time has come, as Jamaica's Prime Minister P.J. Patterson warned the PLP just last week: "to recognise that government is a burden, not a ballgame''.

Nowhere is the need for action and decision-making greater than in the area of public safety.

PUBLIC SAFETY Mr. Speaker, in the past year, the crime rate has increased while the number of police officers has steadily decreased. This worsening situation needs to be quickly fixed if the PLP wants to keep the promises it makes in its Throne Speech."Community policing'' is a strategy that can only work if you have the officers to do the job.

There are substantially fewer Police officers policing our community than there were when the PLP came into office. Bermuda now has at least 72 officers fewer than this Parliament provided for in its budget last year.

Our police need the support of this Government. Our citizens have the right to expect protection. They have the right to expect that emergency 911 calls are responded to quickly, and that their homes and their property will be safe.

Mr. Speaker, a UBP Government would have done what was needed to recruit local officers as energetically as possible and then make up the deficit with trained officers from overseas on short-term contracts.

We urge this government to get down to basics: no matter how dedicated, our Police service can not do its job properly if it does not have the manpower it needs. Nor can Bermuda wage a war on drugs without soldiers to fight the battles.

DRUGS Mr. Speaker, the UBP's concrete plans for a specialised drug court was far advanced when the PLP took office. It remains a good and sound idea but one year later the PLP Government has lost momentum and has failed to complete the establishment of the drug court.

Drugs in sport continue to be a major concern and yet Government has not made its position clear on the drugs-free sport policy. It is especially important that Government show a burning commitment to ensuring that the risks of our youth being exposed to drugs are minimised.

The UBP government offered to subject its members to random drug testing, to lead by example. The UBP Opposition is still committed to random drug testing.

Where does the PLP Government stand on this issue? Sadly, mushy rhetoric in the PLP's Throne Speech about a "comprehensive approach to dealing with offenders through a continuum of care'' offers little comfort to anyone-except the offenders themselves.

TOURISM Mr. Speaker, the PLP came into power promising a 100-day tourism rescue plan -- 100 days have come and gone. Two hundred days have come and gone. A year has come and gone and still the people of Bermuda have seen no plan, and no discernible strategy.

What they have seen is that air arrivals (by the end of August) are down two percent. Length-of-stay and visitor spending are also down.

The Tourism Minister and his entourage have orchestrated an expensive whirlwind of tours to places as far away as Paris, France.

The UBP believes Government must turn its focus away from such costly promotional trips and back towards the product we are trying to sell our visitors -- our facilities, our activities, our services. If we don't get down to these basics, our efforts to promote tourism will ultimately fail. We urge the PLP Government to focus on improving the product we offer our visitors, working with airlines to improve the level and price of air service to the Island, and establishing a Bermuda Tourism Authority. That is the kind of public-private partnership that has worked well around the world.

Mr. Speaker, the PLP Government took office at a time when negotiations involving five hotel properties were at an advanced stage, with more than $500 million in various stages of investment.

The UBP had prepared a plan and incentives and attractions for all those who were at the table. Under the new PLP Government, they have seemingly fallen by the wayside -- Belmont, Morgan's Point, Club Med, Castle Harbour, and the Hotel de Ville in Hamilton.

Thousands of Bermudians are depending on such agreements to be successfully completed. We urge the PLP to re-examine its negotiating techniques and positions. The UBP undertakes to help in any way that it can.

Mr. Speaker, the PLP came into office promising financial incentives to encourage the development and improvement of our hotels. For hotels, however, the new Bermuda has meant unannounced property tax increases that have cost them hundreds of thousands of dollars.

We wish the PLP Government well in its "cruise-stay-and-fly'' initiative. We fear, however, that its potential has been vastly overestimated, and to claim that it could provide 50,000 bed nights a year is frankly misleading.

Experience in the 1980s has taught us that too many cruise ships put a substantial burden on our infrastructure while failing to produce the income that air arrivals do. Too much emphasis is being put on cruise ship arrivals while air arrivals continue to decline. Bermudians whose livelihoods depend on work in hotels, restaurants and taxis know that depending on cruise passengers while allowing air arrivals to continue to decline is a costly mistake.

HOUSING Mr. Speaker, housing is another area where we must beg this government to get down to basics. You can not provide housing if you do not have the houses.

Under the UBP's plan, 100 new houses would have been built throughout the Island.

One year later, not only are there no new houses, but the PLP plan has reduced that number to 50. In addition, the UBP plan provided for at least another 100 new units through renovation of unoccupied and derelict houses. And 54 additional units would have come on line at Southside.

Under the UBP plan, Government would also work with lending institutions to adopt the 10 per cent down-payment scheme adopted by the Housing Corporation.

All told, we have lost precious time and we are moving away from the fundamental principle of home ownership, "the piece of the rock'' that has provided stability and an economic foundation to many Bermudian families.

SENIOR CITIZENS Bermuda's senior population is growing and will continue to grow. It is important to plan for and meet their increasing needs.

Health care, affordable housing, pensions, inflation, and personal safety ought to be key areas of concern. We need more affordable housing units, standards for nursing and rest homes, day care, etc.

Gordon: Too much travel and not enough housing...

We boast that we pay the cost of health care of our senior citizens. But we should be addressing private doctors' visits, mental health coverage and prescription costs. We urge Government to work to appoint a Director of Seniors Programmes and Services, and to establish a Senior Service Centre as a one-stop facility where seniors can conveniently access the services and programmes to which they are entitled.

HEALTH Mr. Speaker, we commend the PLP Government for continuing with the implementation of the Health Care -- Arthur Andersen Strategic Plan.

We believe if carefully introduced, the recommended changes will improve quality and access to care and also help to reduce the rapidly escalating cost of health care in Bermuda.

We do however, have major concerns over the continuing morale and staffing problems at the KEMH. In the last year we have seen the departure of significant numbers of senior executives including the Managing Director, the Chief Financial Officer, the Controller and the Facilities Manager.

Until basic management and staffing issues are sorted out, hospital morale will be low and patient confidence will suffer. It will also be difficult to focus more attention on developing alternatives to hospital admissions, like outpatient facilities and home health programmes.

EDUCATION Mr. Speaker, in education, too, we urge the government to get down to basics.

In the course of the last year, the PLP Government has made some progress in reducing class size, for which we commend it.

But class size matters little if proper educational programmes are not being delivered or if children are sent home from school because of a teacher's strike.

Problems in education cannot be dealt with if they are not quickly acknowledged and addressed. The PLP Government refused to release information on literacy test scores for almost a whole year after it received them. It took almost a year before Government announced a new literacy programme. An entire year was lost.

Time is wasting while parents wait for the Minister to discuss his priorities, reveal how the system is performing and set new standards. The completion of the Berkeley Institute as our second senior secondary school has clearly fallen behind schedule over the last year. Each year behind schedule means another group of students who are deprived of full educational opportunities.

YOUTH & SPORT Mr. Speaker, it is with great interest that the UBP will take note of how the Government will manage the delicate balance of completing the National Stadium for our deserving young people at a time when demand outstrips supply for much needed affordable housing.

When the housing circumstances are as dire as they are in our country at this time, for many of our young people and their families, the challenge is in the trade-off. When a Stadium is perceived as a luxurious amenity and a home is a basic necessity, will those in need of basic shelter get short-changed? TRANSPORTATION Traffic continues to get worse in the new Bermuda; anger, stress, accidents, and a lower quality of life are the results.

The UBP believes that the piecemeal approach taken by the PLP Government will not be successful.

High-speed ferries are of little value without the infrastructure -- like parking lots -- to support them. Pay-as-you go tickets for people caught speeding up to 62 kilometres an hour might ease congestion in the Magistrate's Court. But it is likely to make traffic worse on our roads. We need a co-ordinated transportation plan.

Mr. Speaker, a part of that plan ought to ensure that critical road links with the airport and the East End of the island are preserved and upgraded.

Our earlier engineering efforts to address the condition of the ageing Causeway, as well as the Longbird and Swing Bridge, should be pursued and given top priority.

No mention of them is made in the Throne Speech. In lieu of their own plan, the PLP Government may wish to save time and taxpayer dollars by utilising the comprehensive Transportation 2000 plan that was completed by the UBP government.

ENVIRONMENT While our roads continue to get more crowded, so does the rest of Bermuda.

Our environment is under pressure and needs more protection than ever before.

The PLP Government had promised a comprehensive Environmental Protection Act in their first year but failed to deliver.

We have yet to be assured that the fish-pot ban that safeguards our reefs and our fish stocks, will remain in place. We are yet to see a policy for sustainable development.

SMALL BUSINESS No mention is made in the PLP's Throne Speech of the needs and opportunities of Small Business.

Well over a year ago in partnership with the private sector, the UBP announced an innovative capital loan programme to invest in Bermudian owned and operated businesses.

The programme was designed to provide seed money to get new businesses started. It was designed to provide expertise in accounting and business management and to assist with the development of business plans.

Plans were also underway to foster development of small business at Southside.

What business has seen instead is the imposition of a 25 percent increase in land tax but no sign of the promised Tax Report that logically should have preceded any changes in the tax policy.

E-COMMERCE Mr. Speaker, while we are pleased the PLP Government has seen the wisdom of adopting our policy goals for e-commerce, we must continue to underscore the need for a comprehensive strategy in this fast moving and key area. It is not sufficient to simply proclaim Bermuda as open for e-commerce or to create a special e-commerce Ministry.

Bermuda, in partnership with the private sector, needs to continue to develop its telecommunications sector and we need to ensure both our students and our current workforce have the basic information technology skills and training to flourish in this promising new industry.

CONSTITUTION Mr. Speaker, I now turn to the White Paper on Britain and her Overseas Territories, which did not even merit a mention in the Throne Speech.

It is a glaring omission. A Government that is truly committed to openness, transparency and accountability would have at least provided the people of Bermuda with some clue as to the position it was taking.

While well-meaning people can have opposing views on the right constitutional solution for our Country, the UBP is firm in its convictions that any government has the moral obligation to discuss its views openly and frankly with the people whose interests and futures it is representing.

Opposition responds to Throne Speech In the Throne Speech, the PLP re-affirms its intention to abolish capital punishment. There is no indication that the Government intends to engage the people of this country in any discussion on the issue. It gives no indication that it is considering any alternative punishments.

Mr. Speaker, for the UBP, the issue has been a matter of conscience on which we also sought the opinion of the people by way of referendum. If, however, capital punishment is to be abolished, we believe it is incumbent on Government to simultaneously amend the criminal code to put in its place the most effective deterrents possible. At the very least, life should mean life.

It has now been a year since the political appointment of the Attorney General and we are on the eve of the appointment of a Director of Public Prosecutions.

At the time, we voiced our concerns and we called on Government to develop guidelines or a code of conduct for both positions. Recent events have underscored this need.

We call on Government to produce and publish those guides in the interests of fairness, transpare and accountability.

Mr. Speaker, at the same time, we call for greater openness in Parliament.

Parliamentary questions should be allowed after Ministerial statements, the Public Accounts Committee should be open to the public and the press, and more frequent use should be made of joint select committees to consider changes in government policy.

These committees should be open to the public, both to attend and to make submissions.

FINANCE Mr. Speaker, it is important to speak briefly on the subject of our Country's finances.

One year ago, the PLP inherited a healthy, growing economy. In their first budget, the PLP increased spending by three times the rate of inflation and $35.9 million more than the previous UBP budget. But so far, they have precious little to show for it. At the end of their first year, crime is up, traffic is worse, air visitor numbers continue to fall, the housing situation continues to deteriorate, labour problems have increased and so has inflation.

On the basic issue of fairness, MPs have been given a back door increase through a payroll tax loophole, and the PLP Government, in its legislative agenda for the coming year, has made no commitment to correct it.

To that end, Mr. Speaker, the UBP Opposition has tabled The Payroll Tax Amendment Bill 1999 to correct this anomaly.

Mr. Speaker, too much time, energy and taxpayers' money has been spent on shamelessly political or self-promotional purposes-such as the hiring of a chief of staff; the $125,000 salary for a new political Attorney General; excessive travel spending; new GP cars; and extravagant, self-congratulatory political advertorials in overseas publications.

Our people's money, and our country's reputation, should not be squandered in this way. The PLP is setting a tone of Government that is dangerous to our future. The UBP is prepared to work with Government to build a "New'' and better Bermuda. But if this is what "New Bermuda'' means, we will oppose them.

We appeal to Government to put service before self. There are already serious implications for spending for the reviews, incentives, relocation, training, building plans, etc. incorporated in this Throne Speech, that could signal a greater tax burden to the people, if their Government does not exercise fiscal restraints.

Mr. Speaker, there is no need, in the UBP's view, for politicians on our small Island of 60,000 people, to put themselves on expensive pedestals, to surround themselves with expensive entourages. It is a waste of the resources that should be used directly to help our citizens, and it isolates the government of Bermuda from the people it was meant to serve.

CONCLUSION Mr. Speaker, I will remind the PLP Government of something I said at this time last year: "It must be clear that the challenge has always been to turn good and admirable ideas into action. Many a good idea has failed in implementation.'' The UBP remains convinced that Bermuda can have a bright and shining future.

But the answers to our problems lie in clear vision and decisive action.

We urge the PLP Government to get down to basics. Our goal must be to seek to improve the lot of ordinary Bermudians, not to seek political power and privilege for its own sake.

We must communicate honestly with the people of Bermuda and not hide behind walls of silence. We must truly adhere to the goals of accountability, transparency and fairness.

There is so much more we could and should be accomplishing. We must achieve our full potential. We call upon this PLP Government to move forward with the determination, vision and vigour that the people of this Country need and deserve.

Watchful: Opposition Leader Pamela Gordon yesterday charged those in the PLP Government have found ample time for travel and entertainment, but have failed to address issues such as housing, public safety and tourism.