Wholesaler Jim Butterfield likened the chances of a food price freeze to a visit to the moon as he asked for representation on the new Price Control Commission.Mr Butterfield and Shadow Finance Minister Bob Richards both accused Premier Paula Cox of politicking with her promise to protect families from “unwarranted price increases”.Bermuda Public Services Union president Kevin Grant welcomed the move, saying he’s hopeful it will alleviate his union’s concerns people can’t keep up with the soaring price of essential goods during the economic crisis.But Mr Richards said families would be no better off in the immediate future, adding that a Commission on fuel prices had done nothing to save people paying at the pump.He said people are finding it difficult to keep up with the cost of living because Government has handled the economy so badly.Mr Butterfield said his company Butterfield & Vallis tries to keep prices down, but is faced with fixed overheads such as shipping and ports fees, wages, electricity and costs set by overseas retailers.“Let’s just freeze all the prices we have to pay. Yeah, let’s do that. Let’s all go to the moon too, it would be fun to do that,” Mr Butterfield said last night.“I’m naturally concerned for a whole host of reasons. I would hate to see this thing turn into a political football. It’s such an easy thing to just put the spotlight on food prices. We as a company would love someone to sit on this panel. We don’t take our responsibility lightly in supplying Bermuda with food. The worst thing you can get is uneducated decision-makers.”Mr Butterfield said wholesale is a marginal business and that a price freeze could force some companies to go to the wall, leading to decreased competition.He added that importing from countries which sell food cheaper is not an option as their products are often not up to scratch.One idea could be for families to be more selective when they are shopping, he said, avoiding expensive luxuries such as raspberries and strawberries.Ms Cox announced last Friday that the Price Control Commission will carry out an inquiry into the cost of essential goods, so she can see how Government can ensure they are as low as possible.Her three-person panel will invite input from wholesalers, supermarkets and other stores and unions.Three months ago, 600 BPSU members marched on Cabinet calling for Government to do all it can to implement a price freeze on essential goods and services; Bermuda Industrial Union has also highlighted the rising cost of food.Reacting to the new proposal, Mr Grant said yesterday: “We at the BPSU can certainly appreciate the initiative because if there is any way that this Commission can come up with recommendations that help to alleviate the burden of having to deal with these rising costs, then this is not only something that should benefit the BPSU and its members but the whole of Bermuda.”The president called for representatives from labour and wholesales to serve on the panel, adding: “That represents a more collaborative effort in tackling something like this.“Surely there will be views and issues that Government, labour, and the private sectors will not see eye to eye on.“Having members on the Commission from the various sectors means there will be better representation, possibly more buy-in and a more concerted effort in facilitating this initiative.”Mr Richards said in a statement: “The Government’s plan to study food pricing in Bermuda will not ease financial pressures on struggling families in the foreseeable future.“Families need help now, but this appears to be more about political pandering than an action plan to help people today.“The investigatory processes outlined by the Premier in her statement Friday were exclusively about information gathering from importers and grocers, unions and business organisations, with no mention of what the Government intends to do with food prices, let alone how it plans to take action.“If the Government was truly committed to easing financial pressures on families it could already have addressed fuel prices. Prices at the pump have jumped enormously this past year; 18 percent by the latest report.“Despite the existence of a Price Commission vetting fuel prices, the Government has done nothing to save families money at the pump even though the dollars it costs to drive our cars and trucks are the same dollars from the same pockets that are needed to buy food.“It is worth noting that there is a substantial Government duty on gasoline that adds to the price at the pump, as well as a substantial duty on Belco fuel oil and diesel, which adds to the price of electricity. The fact that more than a thousand families have had their electricity turned off for lack of payment speaks to how serious the energy pricing situation is. It also raises the question why the Government has not activated or applied levers to ease these pressures on people.”Mr Richards said people are feeling the pinch because Government has run up such a large debt in recent years. “One reason the Government has failed to protect people from cost of living pressures is the punishing interest burden of the debt it rang up,” he said.“The fact that the debt now costs the Government $260,000 a day to service is the most important political fact in Bermuda today. “This is money that must be raised and paid before anything else and it has left the Government with no room to help people.“If the Government had not run up the debt to more than $1.2 billion, there might be room to cut duties on fuel or food. Instead, they are busy cutting social services at a time when people need them most.“A ‘caring government’ must turn lip service to into action. This government has already wasted all of its resources and therefore can do very little.“The reality is that the Government has not only presided over but exacerbated an economic decline that may very well have hurt more people financially than any Government in the history of modern Bermuda.”He said the best way to turn things around is through a plan of action to grow the economy.“This Government has not done that nor does it have a plan to do that,” he said. “The One Bermuda Alliance has a plan to reform the economy to generate jobs, grows paycheques and expand opportunity. We want Bermuda to succeed but it will require a commitment to change; change in the way we conduct business and change in the Island’s leadership.“The current Government has run out of ideas, run out of energy and is in a desperate scramble to persuade a sceptical population that it can return the Island to an era of prosperity it let slip from its grasp. We can get Bermuda’s economy back on track. The sooner we start the better. It’s time for a change.”Useful websites: www.plp.bm, www.oba.bm, www.bpsu.bm, www.butterfieldandvallis.com