The Bermuda Government needs to act now on ridding the island of tinted visors after a spate of crimes in which the face-hiding gear has been a hallmark, according to former minister Quinton Edness.

“There’s no point in waiting for legislation; they have to ban these right away, and they can do it by edict,” Mr Edness told The Royal Gazette.

“As the Government, they can declare these things banned from a certain date and anyone wearing them after that date will be breaking the law. They can then bring in legislation to support that.

“For the safety of our public, where people are wearing these to break into businesses and homes, and for the sake of our country, where news of these robberies is going around the world, we must act now.

“Visitors ahead of next year’s America’s Cup will see that these robberies are taking place every other week. That’s going to cause people not to want to come to Bermuda. We need to do this immediately.”

Mr Edness conceded that a ban had been in cards since last November’s Throne Speech. However, “that’s come and gone, and right now we have these robberies every other day”, the former United Bermuda Party minister said.

“We can’t afford to wait on legislation while a lot of businesses are being robbed — that’s ridiculous.

“In the meantime, people who have tinted visors on their helmets should agree that they no longer wear them.”