Budget "was no friendly sweetheart budget'', Opposition leader in the Senate, Sen. Alex Scott said on Friday.

Speaking during the budget debate of the Finance Ministry, Sen. p1,1 Scott said the budget was in many ways a "ruthless one''.

He said Government had still not taken steps to ensure Bermudians were employed as much as possible in the international business sector.

Bermudian males particularly had been shunned, he said, noting Bermudian women working in the insurance industry outnumbered men by one-four.

He conceded the areas of bookkeeping and clerking were almost fully Bermudianised. However, executive/management and accounting positions were mostly occupied by non-Bermudians.

"There has been little growth in the number of Bermudian employees in the international business sector,'' he told senators. In 1977, 64 percent of employees in the industry were Bermudian, he said. By 1991, the number had only climbed to 68 percent.

Sen. Norma Astwood (Ind.) suggested Customs officers at the airport luggage check counters have the benefit of computers so they can check if a person is entitled to claim exemption from duty.

People often fill out their forms incorrectly because they have forgotten how many trips they have taken, she said. Residents are allowed to claim exemption from duty twice each calendar year.

She also queried whether Government was going to take steps to improve the parking situation at the Paget Post Office. There were only two or three parking bays available, she said.

And she asked Government to consider making students, especially British students, exempt from the foreign currency exchange tax. Responding, Finance spokesman Sen. Wendell Hollis said students were exempt from the foreign currency purchase tax, However, the tax on foreign currency exchange was imposed by the banks so there was nothing Government could do.

Sen. Hollis said steps were, in fact, being taken to computerise airport luggage check counters.

Customs officers should have the benefit of computers by the end of summer, he said. "That way they will know immediately if residents are making claims (for exemption) that they are not supposed to,'' he said.

Renovations at Paget Post Office are planned, he said. But there have been problems acquiring surrounding property which is needed to expand the parking lot.

Sen. Hollis said it seemed Sen. Scott was "begrudging'' the fact there was a large number of women employed in the insurance industry.

He pointed out many of the women were married to men in industries like the construction industry which had suffered during the recession. Those women had helped greatly to support their families while their husbands were unemployed, he said.

Finally. Sen. Hollis pointed out one third of the workforce owed its employment to the international business sector. And if foreigners wanted to set up companies in Bermuda they should be encouraged to by being allowed to run their own companies and bring some of their own management people.

Earlier in presenting the budget, Sen. Hollis had said the Tax Commissioner's Office collected a large portion of Bermuda's revenue in employment, hotel occupancy, time-sharing occupancy and hospital taxes. He said he could not perceive a higher level of efficiency where a staff of 14 collected some $85 million in taxes.

The amount estimated to be collected in hotel occupancy tax was some $10 million, which he said was $600,000 less than collected in 1992. The tax accounted for 2.9 percent of Government revenue.

Some 49 million in hospital levy is anticipated, which is about $100,000 less than collected in 1992, he said.

The estimated tax from time-sharing occupancy tax is $125,000, which is up $75,000 over last year -- due to expansion at the St. George's Club, he said.*l