Locals should not blame international business and work permit holders for traffic congestion and housing shortages as such problems are a result of the Bermuda success story that has also improved their standard of living, says the outgoing chairman of the Bermuda International Business Association Greg Haycock.

Mr. Haycock spoke to after ending two years at the helm of BIBA. He continues to play an active role with the organisation as past chairman. BIBA?s new chairman is Lloyd Wiggin.

While the international business sector has a good relationship with the Ministry of Finance and the Bermuda Monetary Authority, Mr. Haycock notes that the relationship with locals is sometimes strained because they blame international business or work permit employees for causing more difficulties than they really do.

Locals must recognise that Bermuda is successful because international business is successful, he said.

?It is easier to criticise the work permit holder than it is the Bermudian but it is our success that it is doing it. It is not the exempt company or the person on a work permit. It is the Bermuda success story,? he said adding that sometimes the work permit holder is blamed while other facts go unrecognised.

?There are a lot more Bermudians who are employed and doing much better than ever before and who can afford to live in their own homes and buy their own cars whereas perhaps they couldn?t before,? he said adding that Bermuda depends on the the work permit holder to run the exempt companies and support the exempt companies.

Mr. Haycock said that while there is often a spotlight shone on new business coming in, there is not a lot of discussion about business leaving through natural attrition ? many just set up for a specific purposes or time period. For that reason, the Island must never cease looking for new business.

?We have had natural turnover for many years so there is always a need to attract new business to come in just to replace what is leaving,? Mr. Haycock said. ?You can?t turn the tap off. You can?t say we don?t have any room for new business or want any new business because if you say to the outside world sorry this is it we?re full it is very difficult to get it going again as we have seen in other places.?

BIBA however is eyeing growing in certain sectors of international business that will be more sustainable for Bermuda. The investment fund business for one is what Mr. Haycock deems a ?quiet success?. While Bermuda is not the leader in this sector, Mr. Haycock said it is one area where BIBA is pushing for growth since funds can be managed by existing fund mangers without impacting housing, schools and transport and other infrastructure.

?You can have a marginal increase in back office administration to look after a lot more business so it is a quiet success that they do very well because they are here and a known commodity,? he said.

The big risk with funds however is that they are easily moved if they cannot find the staff they need. Some Bermuda fund managers have recently moved to eastern Canada and other places for this very reason, he said adding that BIBA sees the education of young Bermudians as way to solve the professional staffing shortages which plague every sector of international business.

While it continues its push to encourage young Bermudians to stay in school, BIBA is also stressing the need for students to seek out advice from the international business sector to ensure they get the ?right kind of education?. He points to evidence of some good students going away for school and coming back trained in subjects that are not beneficial to them if they want to enter international business when they return to Bermuda.