Senators yesterday crossed swords over a pair of hard-hitting reports into handling of public cash under the previous United Bermuda Party administration.

And Government Senate leader Milton Scott said the reports by the official Auditor diminished UBP claims that the country had been well-run.

But Opposition Senate leader Maxwell Burgess said Bermuda's double AA rating by top international bodies proved Bermuda had been in good hands.

And he added: "Bermuda has no oil, we dug for no diamonds and we've got no precious metals.

"But what we have done, the former UBP Government, we have taken a country and gone out internationally and held our audited statements up for all to see -- and got double AA.

"When you cut through the fluff, when you cut through the rhetoric, we got a double AA rating and good borrowing and good rates.'' And he said a rash of resignations at the King Edward VII Memorial Hospital was proof that the new Government had a lot to learn about management and the line between politics and day-to-day running of departments.

But Sen. Scott insisted: "If there is anything people should get out of this, it's that we've had one big mess-up in the managing of Government records.'' And he added Auditor Larry Dennis has found millions of dollars could not be properly accounted for in his reports for the financial years 95-96 and 96-97.

Mr. Dennis also criticised the previous Government's practice of taking supplementary estimates to the House of Assembly for approval after the money had already been spent.

Sen. Scott cited more than $20 million extra which was spent on school restructuring and the building of CedarBridge Academy as examples.

He said: "For years, the rhetoric that we have heard is `better the devil you know than the one you don't'.'' But he added: "The PLP are not the bogey men we were made out to be for 30 years.

"And the UBP have not been as good caretakers or stewards of the public purse as they tried to convince the public they were.'' Sen. Scott said former Finance Ministers had talked of "Bermuda Inc.'' in discussing the finances of the country.

But he added: "It's important, if you're a company and you're listed on the Stock Exchange, to realise you have an obligation to the shareholders.'' Sen. Scott said that ordinary Bermudians had suffered because of a failure to hunt down unscrupulous employers who deducted pension contributions for years -- but never passed them on to Government, so people who thought they had a pension did not.

He added: "There is only one work to describe that -- and that is fraud. I'm glad legislation has been passed to make that an indictable offence.

"If this money is deducted, it must be passed on.'' But both sides agreed with the Auditor's assessment that, although accounting was sloppy in many areas, there was no evidence of fraud.

And Sen. Scott said the Progressive Labour Party Government had ensured Government's computer system would be Y2K compliant by October -- where the former Government had not done nearly enough in that area.

But Sen. Burgess said the Public Accounts Committee in the last administration -- chaired by current Finance Minister Eugene Cox -- had failed to bring reports to the House of Assembly on time for several years.

He added, however, that Bermuda's international reputation proved the worth of the work of the former Government.

Mr. Burgess admitted: "Of course, some things could have been done better -- you can have full-time Ministers if you like, you can pay them ten times as much if you want to.

"And I couldn't help but chuckle when the Government took credit for Bermuda being Y2K compliant.'' And he said work had begun on the problem "a long time ago.'' Former top Civil Servant, Sen. Walwyn Hughes (Ind.) said: "I think Bermuda can rest comfortably knowing that the public service, while it may have failings at times...it's never been anything other than honest.'' Opposition Sen. Kim Swan agreed: "The Civil Service is honest -- contrary to what most people think, politicians do not have their hands on the purse strings.'' And he added that the Opposition would continue to point out claimed shortcomings as well as good points -- but he warned that the UBP "did not intend to be the Opposition for ever.'' PLP Sen. Michael Scott said that the previous Government had "failed lamentably'' in its role of stewardship for years.

He added: "That can't change -- no matter how many bricks you throw at the Public Accounts Committee.'' Government Sen. Calvin Smith said that bad records meant that the UBP "could not possibly stick their chests out and say `we're the best Government Bermuda's ever had'.'' Sen. Smith added: "If the Opposition, the former Government, wishes to continue to brag about the good things, and they did some good things, they should also take some responsibility.'' Senate President Alf Oughton , who spoke last on the take note motion, said that some organisations were years behind with accounts and had been highlighted in successive Auditor's reports.

He added: "Some groups, like Parish Councils, don't submit reports. Somebody in authority should blow the whistle.

"That's the crucial thing -- any auditor tells you something, you put it right.

"If that same record is repeated in the next year, that has to mean something.''