Funding for the Bermuda Independence Commission (BIC) will be provided from Government?s Central Policy Unit based on its needs, a Government spokesperson explained yesterday.

The BIC is operating just as any Government committee or board operates, she added, so members will be remunerated at $50 per meeting.

With no independent budget, funding for anything needed by the BIC, such as overseas resources, will be facilitated through the liaison person, Philip Perinchief. The 14-member BIC was introduced to each other and the country by Premier Alex Scott at Camden House on Thursday.

Chaired by Bishop Vernon Lambe, head of the First Church of God, the Commission includes lawyers, politicians, former civil servants, members of the international business, entertainment and financial sectors, hoteliers, and entrepreneurs.

Former Attorney General and MP Dame Lois Browne-Evans, a member of the BIC, will act as an advisor to the group, while Philip Perinchief is to be a liaison between BIC and Government ? though he will not have any voting power ? if that is the route the Commission chooses to take ? the Premier said on Thursday.

Other members of the group include:, who campaigned to become a PLP Sandys North by-election candidate in February of this year. At the time, Mr. Bean cited the Premier as his inspiration for leaping into politics, and called for Bermuda to pursue a path of ?self-determination and interdependence?.

The Island could never be truly ?independent?, he said, without links to regions which directly serve the Island?s interests. At least three to five years of preparation would be necessary to get on this path, he said., who retired last year after a 35-year career with the accounting firm. A trustee of the Bermuda National Gallery, he is also a member of the Insurance Advisory Committee.Former president of the International Bar Association Diana Kempe Q.C., also the first female president of that organisation.

Recognised as a pioneer in the field of international law, she was the senior and managing partner at Appleby, Spurling and Kempe (now Appleby, Spurling and Hunter) and the first woman to make it to the top of that firm. Originally from England, she moved to Bermuda in 1971 and considers the Island home. , president of TreeCon Ltd. Also a former president of the Hamilton Rotary Club and the Chamber of Commerce, he owns Cracker Box in St. George?s and Hodge Podge in the city of Hamilton. In 1995 he was one of the key individuals responsible for the development of the St. George?s Town Heritage Plan, Bringing History to Life. . Also a member of the Berkeley Institute Board, Mr. Phillips was recently named as a facilitator between the Bermuda Taxi Owners Association (BTOA) and the Government over the GPS dispute, though few results have been broadcast publicly after the GPS bill?s failure to be made into law., a staunch supporter of the Progressive Labour Party who makes no secret of his pro-Independence sentiments., which recently celebrated its 20th anniversary, surviving in spite of competition from larger pharmacies on the Island.

The family-owned pharmacy was the first to open all day Sundays and install a computerised dispensary system., regarded as Bermuda?s pre-eminent entertainment promoter, and someone who introduced Bermuda such internationally-renowned performers as Ray Charles and Byron Lee.

He has also produced numerous recordings under the Edmar Records label, most Bermudian. Born in the Azores, he was president of Vasco da Gama Club for 17 years and has been consulted by various Government administrations on issues relating to the Portuguese in Bermuda., also the president of Cambridge Beaches. Mr. Winfield was the former Senate Leader under the United Bermuda Party and held the post of Minister of Management and Technology, helping to map out the future of Bermuda?s military bases in the early 90s.