An independent tourism authority, the plight of the elderly, and solutions to the housing crisis were discussed by Senators yesterday as Government?s social agenda led off a day of heated discussions.

The 2004 Throne Speech was put under the microscope by Opposition and Independent Senators who questioned how the Island?s social issues were to be tackled without specific initiatives or detailed timelines establishing Government?s commitment to meeting their goals.

But Government Senators said Government displayed full commitment to providing economic empowerment and opportunity for all citizens as highlighted in a number of community programmes, stricter court sentences, a reduction of the number of guest workers, and a vision to bridge the gap between the ?haves and have nots? in society.

Government Senate Leader led off debate by calling the speech a ?watershed? signalling a turning point in affairs. He said the speech should receive collective support from the community as it displayed a vision by Government to provide economic empowerment and opportunity for all Bermudians.

Sen. Mussenden said it would take a collective effort on the part of the community for the ideas and commitments on the social agenda to come to fruition.

?We need to move forward holding hands ? the haves of this society must help by picking up a person who is a have not so they too can enjoy the benefits of this country,? he said. ?The social agenda will be at the heart of every initiative we will bring forward.?

Speaking about his past careers as a defence lawyer and a Crown counsel, Sen. Mussenden highlighted the excerpt in the Throne Speech that imposes hefty fines and longer court sentences for drug related offences.

Mr. Mussenden said this showed a commitment to stamping out the scourge of drugs which he said ruined families and prevented people from leading productive lives.

He said the fines, which can now reach up to $500,000 in the Supreme Court, were a positive start to stamping out illicit drug use and would suck up some of the money rolling around in the drug world.

And when it came to seniors, Sen. Mussenden said the Opposition UBP was making a ?meal? out of the plight of senior citizens, whom he said were enjoying the success of what their children had accomplished.

?The Opposition is making a meal out of what they consider to be the plight of seniors, this Government has provided and will provide for them more than the Opposition ever did.?

Building a foundation for a strong local labour force was also enhanced, according to Sen. Mussenden by the fact that there are fewer work permits than in the past.

But Opposition Senate Leader replied thatsocial issues could not be taken lightly.

In an emotional speech, he said: ?A year and a half after the PLP?s second election we have a Throne Speech that looks like an election platform. I have to ask you what have you been doing for the last six years?

Sen. Swan said Government was fond of calling the Opposition unsupportive and negative, but a year of labour unrest indicated that the Island?s working classes which Government claimed to support was disenfranchised from political leaders who ?travelled widely, enjoyed the cocktail circuit, and acted with unprecedented arrogance?.

He said the people of Anchorage Road, St. George?s had had their rights violated when they were moved out of their homes, and the PLP had turned their backs on a the taxi drivers who had driven them to the polls in 1998, increased rents on seniors and enforced greater polarisation in all sectors of the community.

Mr. Swan, a professional golfer, also called on Government to establish a Tourism Authority and to promote Bermuda in gateway cities along the East Coast with specific ideas either using golfing or other activities which appeal to visitors.

He said the authority was overwhelmingly supported by the community who expressed interest in the idea last year at a public meeting to address tourism.

Independent saidhe supported the idea of a social agenda where Government commits itself to reaching out to those who less. He supported wellness clinics for seniors and community partnerships with the international business sector.

?It?s hard to find fault with the deep objectives of the speech; we?d all like to see a Bermuda where everyone has housing and access to a good education and good health care,? he said.

?However, in the document there is an emphasis on strategy and investigation ? these are nebulous terms which need to be addressed. As a speech I would say there is not a strong emphasis on specifics.?

Although ideas to solve the housing crisis were presented in the speech, Mr. Hughes said striving for a solution would mean abandoning traditional building methods to a certain point and embracing new technologies which led to quick and inexpensive housing for those who need it most.

Sen. Hughes said he was particularly concerned that the speech did not address education more specifically and there was less on public education than there might have been on improving standards of public education.

He said the 25 percent graduation rate of high school students in public education showed more needed to be done to improve the lives and success of young people.

(PLP) said: ?The contents of the Throne Speech confirms that Government is intending to serve all people in Bermuda.?

He added that the social agenda of the Throne Speech gave particular attention to housing, seniors, and the youth.

?All of those three things will lead us to economic empowerment,? he said.

?Economic empowerment is something we are looking at that goes hand in hand with the social agenda.?

Regarding criticisms by the Opposition, Sen. Tyrrell said: ?People are failing to see the plan of this Government. It is a methodical plan that we have engaged in since 1998.?

He pointed out that the Government will focus on disadvantaged Bermudians and ?set things straight?.

And Sen. Tyrrell asked the media to avoid highlighting negative aspects of Bermuda?s youth.

Independent said she found several things in the Throne Speech encouraging except the lack of timelines attached to some initiatives.

She added that she would like to see the issue of individuals using cellular phones while driving addressed.

And she asked how Government intended to increase the number of students who graduate from the Island?s schools, which was one of the initiatives announced in the Speech.

But(PLP)said there were many timetables attached to initiatives.

?There are so many things that need to be addressed and this Government is committed to do it,? he said.

He applauded the education initiatives in the Throne Speech including Tech Quest 2000 which offers technical education to locals.

?I am optimistic that the programmes will ensure change for a lot of people,? he said.

Mr. Rabain also pointed out the plan to start a child abuse register, where names of sex offenders are placed on a list for the public to view.

?The child abuse register will ensure that our children are protected,? he added.

(UBP) also expressed concern with the lack of timelines, saying the speech ?sounded good? but there was no way of holding Government to its promises.

He said that the proposal for 200 homes in Marginal Wharf, St. George?s has not been given a timeline and he said that there were about 100 employees currently in that area who have no problem with the housing proposal but want to know when it will happen.

He added that the abandoned Club Med Hotel in St. George?s should have been addressed in the speech.

Mr. Bascome also said the plan in the Throne Speech to go to Europe to look for tourists was ?pathetic? because there were plenty of potential visitors much closer on the East Coast of America.

He added that there was no mention in the speech of programmes for individuals who were just released from prison and put into community-based homes.

Government said Government did not create such problems as the war in Iraq or the 9/11 terrorist attacks on the United States.

Instead, the PLP Government had inherited a slew of problems, including the lack of opportunity for small black businesses, from the former UBP Government.

Despite this unfortunate circumstance, the PLP Government was ?working diligently? to solve the problems, he said.

Sen. Tannock voiced his support of Premier Alex Scott?s statement that he would award the Berkeley contract to Pro-Active Management Systems again. ?We have to give our people opportunities,? he said.

The failure of the contract was just further evidence that the support of small black businesses was not there, he said.

?Maybe we were naive,? he said, adding Government had thought people would jump at the opportunity for change.

In his maiden speech of his second term in the Senate, Opposition accused the Government of ?living la vida loca? for the last six years, arguing it had ?conspicuously failed? to make any progress on issues such as the housing crisis and better healthcare for senior citizens.

Pouring scorn on the Social Agenda, Sen. Richards argued the initiative contained ?very few new ideas? ? demonstrating, he said, that Government had ?nothing tangible or realistic? to offer Bermudians.

Dwelling for some time on the culture of ?corruption and mendacity? at the Bermuda Housing Corporation, Sen. Richards said that he was concerned there had been no reference to the promised anti-corruption legislation in the Throne Speech.

This was clear evidence, he said, that Government lacked the ?desire and commitment? to prevent any potential malpractice in the future.

?It is not a legal authority which makes Government legitimate but a moral and ethical authority,? he said. ?The fact that Government did not go out of its way to promote this is both cynical and alarming.?

Chiding the Government for its handling of the Berkeley project, Sen. Richards said that although he was a keen supporter of the policy of black economic empowerment, the ?chaos? of the delayed construction project had ?set black business development back 20 years? and given credibility to the arguments of the ?racist naysayers? who say that ?blacks cannot organise anything properly?.

Government apologised to Government supporters and ?all those who?ve waited for the Social Agenda?.

Government would have liked to implement the Social Agenda some time ago, he said, but ?we inherited a very tired and run-down infrastructure which had to be worked on as quickly as possible?.

Affordable housing was his own number one concern, and the partnership Government was creating with the private sector should lead to a ?tremendous? increase in the amount of affordable housing on the Island, he said. The partnership between Bermuda Homes for People and Government to build 200 homes at Southside was one such example.

In the meantime, he said it was far less stressful for Bermudians to rent from a good landlord ? like the Bermuda Housing Corporation, whom he said will not increase rents unreasonably and would do proper maintenance on homes.

Seniors were of utmost concern to Government, he said. However, families had to play a larger role in caring for their elderly relatives. ?You can?t expect Government to do everything.?

Something must also be done to ready Bermuda for the mega cruise ships of the future, adding that only one port on the Island ? Dockyard ? is currently capable of berthing a megaship.

The Corporation of Hamilton and Government were already working together to ready the city?s waterfront, he said. St. George?s, however, will have ?to get on board ... If we are going to compete, that must be done?.

Senate President called on Senators to stop wasting time blaming each others? parties for all the problems on the Island and start fixing the problems.

?I, like others, wanted more meat on the bones? of the Throne Speech, he said.

That included more of what legislation Government planned to table this year, and less open-ended proposals.

?It must be fully understood that it cannot just be enough to set words and numbers and hope something materialises around it.?

The Speech contained much about seminars and forums for seniors, he said. Many seniors like himself, however, had wanted less talk and more immediate action.

Government cannot solve the plight of seniors alone, he agreed. It can assist, however, perhaps by refraining from increasing seniors? rents.

Sen. Oughton also voiced high hopes that the newly legislated Health Council will impact seniors by setting some controls for health care costs.

The cost of health care for seniors to Government was significant, he said, noting that it was a little known fact that Government pays up to 80 and 90 percent of the medical bill for seniors at the hospital. The same policy applies at certain hospitals overseas, like Johns Hopkins in Baltimore.

?You wouldn?t find that anywhere else.?

There must be some way for Government to cap rents, he said, adding that some rents in today?s Bermuda are exhibits of ?pure greed?.

?At the moment, young kids in Bermuda don?t have a chance of owning a piece of the Rock unless they win the lottery, and even less of a chance of finding somewhere with a decent rent,? he said.

As international business was running itself, he said, Tourism deserved more than the ?scant pass over it received in the Throne Speech. ?We need to concentrate.?

Tourism provided employment for a significant portion of Bermuda?s workforce who could not enter international business, he said.

?Without Tourism, the Social Agenda can?t make it.?