Healthcare, housing and education problems in Bermuda are to blame for mothers uprooting and starting new lives overseas, Shadow Families Minister Donte Hunt claimed yesterday.Mr Hunt said Bermudian women who head to the UK with their children are merely trying to find a way of surviving because life is so tough on the Island.He was reflecting on lawyer Kai Musson’s claims that fathers are losing access to their sons as mothers take advantage of financial benefits in Britain.“The heavier issue here is why this is a phenomenon in the first place,” Mr Hunt said in a statement.“Why are so many Bermudian women choosing to take their children to the UK? Perhaps we should be asking: why not? If the basic needs aren’t being met here in Bermuda, why wouldn’t people decide to seek an alternative?“While the system is undeniably stretched in England, healthcare, housing and education are still more accessible to mothers looking for assistance in the UK.“Here, unemployed uninsured mothers are not only growing in number but living in fear that they will end up incarcerated for debt.“In this Country, unpaid bills for fundamental services such as medical care can result in jail time which ultimately affects the ability to parent.“Child and Family Services can become involved and even remove children from care, citing grounds of ‘neglect’ in instances of ‘financial instability’.“Even when financial assistance is provided, making ends meet can be seemingly impossible for increasing numbers of Bermudians. With dwindling prospects of employment, limited access to healthcare, educational woes and the astronomical cost of food and electricity, it’s no wonder why life elsewhere might be viewed as an opportunity.”This week The Royal Gazette has reported about fathers upset at losing access to their sons, and frustrated mothers who sympathise with those that leave the Island.Meanwhile many in Britain have complained the benefits system rewards people for being unemployed and encourages them to have children they wouldn’t otherwise be able to afford.Mr Hunt said: “We certainly don’t want our Island in the sun to become a welfare state, but in a population as small as Bermuda’s we should be able to provide basic services to those who need support.“The perception may be that people just want to live off the system, but The Royal Gazette’s articles highlight an issue that begs the question: What are the options? If you talk to the women who are leaving Bermuda for what they believe is a better life in the UK, they will tell you that they are not looking to mooch off another system, they are simply looking for another means to survive.”The One Bermuda Alliance politician, a father-of-two, noted it is difficult to prevent a woman from leaving the Country if she can prove the child’s life will be better abroad, regardless of the father’s wishes.“As someone who cannot imagine daily life without my kids, I feel for the men who are affected by this but also see why it presents a challenge for the legal system,” he said.“If a primary caregiver argues that the advantages of living in another jurisdiction is holistically better for them, and therefore their children’s well-being, it is difficult to stop them from leaving despite the fact that children do tend to thrive with the involvement of their fathers.“In other words, any lawyer worth his weight can convincingly argue that the pros outweigh the cons and that the mother should not be restricted from moving with her kids.”This newspaper has been inundated with feedback from parents affected by similar scenarios to that outlined by Mr Musson.One man who e-mailed us yesterday said: “I just want to say that I was very happy to read the article, as I am in exactly the same position.“The mother of my baby moved to the UK with our baby then returned to Bermuda in June. But she is trying to go back to the UK again for good.“I do not agree with her decision and would like to fight to stop her from taking my baby. I love my daughter and I don’t want to live away from her, that is the reason I am still on the Island, being a foreigner. I cannot even leave now because I want to be next to my baby, I want to be part of my child’s life.“The mother is Bermudian, and she still wants to leave the Country with my daughter, tearing her away from all the rest of the family. I don’t know what rights I have to stop her and I can’t afford much a lawyer. I do really need help, please.”Families Minister Glenn Blakeney has not responded to requests for a comment this week.l See related story on Page 5