Government for giving the Island's youngsters "a slap in the face''.

Speaking in the House of Assembly on Friday, the Smith's South MP launched an attack on Development and Opportunity Minister Terry Lister, who had earlier appealed to businesses to take on more black workers from overseas.

But Mr. Woolridge insisted that international businesses would be better off seeking to employ local talent before seeking skilled workers abroad.

Referring to a recent television interview given by Mr. Lister, Mr. Woolridge said: "The honourable minister was appealing to the business community to bring in black expatriates to fill positions here.

"He said they would become role models for our young people. Where are the parents? I would have more respect if he appealed to the community to go into Berkeley and Warwick Academy and CedarBridge and select the brightest and the best and give them the necessary training.

"It's wonderful to have international businesses here but there are down sides. Putting in black people isn't going to help anything. Let's get our own house in order.

"If it's necessary to get somebody from outside then I don't care if they're green as long as they can do the job. But this is a slap in the face to our young people.

"What you are saying to our young people is you will never rise to the top and so we are going to bring in black role models for you to emulate.

"But no mention was made of going into the schools and getting the best to go into international business.'' "Bermudians should be given the first opportunity and we should give those to our young people. But there's a different philosophy coming out here.'' Mr. Woolridge also asked just how easy it would be to draft in highflyers.

"Where are they going to come from?'' he asked.

"They are moving up the corporate ladder and they are going to lose their place if they come here because they're going to be on a restricted time period.'' But Labour and Immigration Minister Paula Cox hit back, saying that Government would always strive to make sure that Bermudians were given "a fair shake''.

But she seemed to distance herself from Mr. Lister's appeals. Reminding the House that it was her department, and not Mr. Lister's, that issued work permits, she denied that there would be any quotas.

"It's not about quotas, it's about making sure that, when a job is advertised, Bermudians would be given a fair shake,'' she said.

"We have Bermudians who are qualified here and before you start talking about bringing in people, you have to make sure those that are already here are considered -- white or black.'' But the Minister went on to defend her Cabinet colleague and called for employers to adopt a different approach whenever they did have to scour the overseas market for staff.

"Government is going to have to make some hard decisions and they will not always be popular but clearly there needs to be a new direction,'' she said.

"When you read adverts which are clearly meant to exclude Bermudians that is a concern. There are areas that people have concerns about and those areas are being worked on.

"This Government came in on a mandate for change and change takes time. But the sentiments of CURE are sentiments that this Government must endorse.''