This is an abridged version of the speech delivered on Wednesday night by Premier Dr. Ewart Brown JP, MP at the Inter-American Economic Council's fifth annual congressional dinner with the Caribbean community in Washington, DC:

I am conscious of the fact that I follow, at this podium, giants in the Region like the Right Honourable Patrick Manning of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago and His Excellency Bharat Jagdaeo President of the Republic of Guyana. With this in mind I am aware of the high standard of oratory to which you have become accustomed and I shall aim to ensure that Bermuda is also remembered for an address worthy of your attention.

Of course as you well know, Bermuda is not in the Caribbean although we are associate members of CARICOM and culturally we as a people share common lineage with the peoples of the Caribbean Diaspora. Many of us can claim roots in Jamaica, St. Kitts and Nevis, Barbados, Antigua, Saba and St. Eustatius. I myself spent a portion of my formative years in Jamaica.

In fact, I credit my exposure to the politics of Noman Manley and Alexander Bustamante with igniting in me the fire of political interest. I had absolutely no idea, no clue, what would happen to a 10-year-old boy who dared to sneak out of his aunt's home in Spanish Town to mesmerised by the oratory of Jamaica's political giants.

Nonetheless, here I am today – ready to tackle the task at hand.

Ladies and gentlemen, the Mission Statement of the Congressional Caribbean Caucus speaks to the importance of fostering an ongoing dialogue for Caribbean Governments and Businesses to discuss pending legislation and regulatory regimes impacting them. In addition to that, the Caucus promotes a forum to discuss issues of concern.

The thriving insurance and reinsurance business that fuels the Bermuda economy is based upon our ability to provide an environment of sound regulatory practices and first-rate infrastructure combining the form and atmosphere conducive to the conduct of this critically important business.

Bermuda's position is unique, economically, as we have no real natural resources except what we have created by way of this business-friendly environment and secondly a natural beauty that lures significant numbers of tourists annually. Our history is one of triumph over adversity to make us a leader in this area of insurance and reinsurance.

We monitor legislation and congressional musings on what some of your colleagues refer to as offshore tax havens with great interest and we respect your Legislature's aims in protecting revenue for American taxpayers. Our position when lobbying on Capital Hill is frank and forthright. We are not a tax haven and not an environment of corporate inversions designed to allow any evasion of taxes. Ours is an Island of sound, AA-rated practices and we deliver a product attractive to companies who otherwise would have significant liabilities were they elsewhere.

The benefits of Bermuda's close relationship with the United States as manifested in the presence of insurance and reinsurance leaders on our Island was made manifest in 2005 and beyond by the significant role played in meeting the losses occasioned by Hurricane Katrina. In 2001 shortly after the tragedy of 9/11, when President Bush convened a meeting of the major players in the insurance and reinsurance sectors, seated at that table was the head of a Bermuda based company.

Since and including 9-11, almost $25 billion in claims have been delivered from Bermuda to American policy holders.

Perhaps even more impressive, $100 billion dollars of US Capital is invested in Bermuda; the overwhelming majority of that money is a result of the insurance and re-insurance industry.

This sizeable capital is tremendously beneficial to the Bermudian job market. However, there are policy and social obstacles for us to grapple with as a result. Some people might say these are nice problems to have, but problems they are nonetheless.

First, and most importantly for me, how will we ensure Bermuda's public education system can produce the kind of high quality talent necessary to participate in this industry? Over the past decade, the number of highly skilled job opportunities in the international business sector – like actuaries – has grown exponentially. However, the quality of student we produce in Bermuda has not risen to meet the demand. So as a result, too many of our young people are spectators to the wealth and success their Government has facilitated.

It's tremendously frustrating to see people from all over the world come to Bermuda and realize unparalleled riches while my people settle for less lucrative career paths.

That's part of the reason we are comprehensively revamping the public education system in Bermuda. It is happening aggressively and unapologetically under the Minister for Education because we consider it to be crucial and urgent. Sometimes the work in this area is uncomfortable, but so be it because the work is necessary.

I advocate that educating our people is our most important responsibility.

Therefore we have turned to an American educator, Henry Johnson, who has accepted the challenge of higher standards.

However, improved public education won't be enough. Education without application is an unfulfilling exercise. A companion program is required to bring the successes of international business into more Bermudian homes.

I call it Goodwill Plus.

The international businesses that call Bermuda home are filled with goodwill; they contribute to our communities in very positive ways. When I tell them my strong desire to have more Bermudians in the upper ranks of their firms, they tell me they are handcuffed until they have better Bermudian talent to recruit.

I understand. That's why I'm promoting Goodwill Plus. The CEO's are already providing the goodwill; the Government is going to provide the plus.

When international business comes to our Ministry of Immigration looking for a work permit for Sven from Sweden, we will grant that permit but it will have conditions.

Attached to Sven's three year work permit will be young Johnny, a Bermudian who has just graduated from college with a degree in financial services and a hunger for success.

Of course Johnny doesn't have the kind of experience Sven does.

I understand.

But Goodwill Plus will compensate for Johnny's inexperience because in order to get the work permit the CEO has agreed to put a scheme in place that trains Johnny to take over Sven's job when the three-year term is up.

After three years, Sven goes back to Sweden and Johnny is on his way to a healthy career.

In this scenario the CEO is getting the highly skilled employee he wants, without compromising quality — and the Government is getting its own people in position to enjoy hometown success.

Furthermore, and this is important, Sven knows the score before he packs up his life and moves to Bermuda. He knows exactly how long he will be in Bermuda and can easily plan his next career move. And young Johnny will have the advantage of knowing his professional future. He knows he is not in a dead end situation - he has confidence that the sky is the limit.

The success of our international business sector is not without obstacles, but we believe we have a strategy that can hurdle those obstacles.

I think everyone comes out ahead with Goodwill Plus.

In the meantime, as we build policies to overcome the obstacles in our flourishing economy, we are not blind to that fact that things can change legislatively as quickly as it takes for your country to elect new leaders.

However, we are keen to participate in an ongoing dialogue via the Congressional Caribbean Caucus and the Inter-American Economic Council which we hope can produce a commonality of purpose and an understanding between us that will minimise the passage of legislation harmful to our economies and by extension our peoples.

With $25 billion in claims delivered to American policy holders since 9-11, I think it's easy to see that the current regulatory partnership benefits both countries.

As some of you know I am a physician by profession and have had the benefit of practicing medicine and working in public health in California and Bermuda; I have a keen interest in healthcare and in my own country of 65,000 people my colleague responsible for Health has taken up my challenge of drastically improving the delivery of healthcare to our people and doing so with dignity and without regard to class, race or economic status.

Having lived and practised my profession in the United States, I too am aware of the challenges presented in healthcare in this country. Forty-seven million Americans uninsured is a dramatically depressing number for someone like me who has studied and practiced in public health for decades. It seems that this issue will loom large in the upcoming Presidential Race — and for good reason.

The absence of health insurance for such large portions of the population continues to plague US lawmakers daily.

I lead a country that requires every single employer provide healthcare coverage for every single employee. It's a system we are proud of. Nonetheless, as a physician I worry about the health of my people and indeed people in the Caribbean as well.

I see unity of purpose on this issue. In the area of obesity and non-communicable diseases the emerging symmetry in our cultures is frightening. In my country where mayonnaise is often referred to as the national sauce we have high incidences of hypertension, diabetes and heart disease….sound familiar? I believe that the next great issue to which we must find solutions is the health of our nations. I respectfully submit that the Congressional Caribbean Caucus and the Inter-American Economic Council must include healthcare and wellness as an integral part of their respective agendas. Our Regional economies will be jeopardised if we do not manage the health of our people by encouraging healthy lifestyles and eating habits. With improved emergency healthcare services, people are living longer but with symptoms of diseases brought on by the lives they led. This cycle of treating poor lifestyle choices when they have advanced to recognised diseases will drain our economies as we provide healthcare to our people.

The same must be said of communicable diseases, particularly HIV/AIDS. Cultural maxims make this disease difficult to acknowledge, but the growing incidences of it in Regional populations is cause for concern. I urge the Council and the Caucus to add the Caribbean Region to the African Continent as an area under threat in this regard. This issue must be top of mind in any discussion on healthcare and the sharing of successful interventionist and preventive measures should form an integral part of our ongoing discussions.

Lastly, I would be remiss if I did not address the key economic sector of tourism in the Region. In my own country I have been forced to deal with an inherited malaise in the industry which has been a challenge to turn around. We have turned a corner in our tourism product such that lowered airfares have made a Bermuda vacation available to many and new hotel developers are flocking to our shores.

We are underway with some of the most recognisable and luxurious brands in the hotel industry - Ritz Carlton, Inter-Continental, and St. Regis are on the list. We are also on our way to a Jumeriah hotel, the Dubai based group which operates the world's only seven-star hotel. They too will do business in Bermuda. Our destination in the Atlantic is on the wish list of many.

These multi-million dollar projects, these huge capital commitments, tell me that we are on the right track with tourism in Bermuda. Our air arrivals are up, cruise arrivals are up, and the hotels are full. We haven't had a new hotel built in Bermuda in three decades. It is not only time for us, but this is the right time. The trick will be to grow tourism in a controlled manner and we are taking steps to accomplish this so that we are not victim to our own successes.

I am aware, however, that the imposition of the Western hemisphere Travel Initiative and its concurrent requirement for US citizens to travel with passports has hurt our neighbours to the South. In no way seeking to diminish the homeland security needs of the United States, I urge the Council and the Western Hemisphere Subcommittee to examine the effects of this Initiative to ensure that its stated objectives match the outcomes and that our Regional economies are not damaged as a result.

In 1776 the Founding Fathers of this great nation started America on a course of greatness. Unlike my colleagues Manning, Jagdaeo, Golding and Gonsalves I do not lead an independent, sovereign nation. There are other Territories like Bermuda whose tie to the United Kingdom remains. My last request of the Council and of the Congressional Caribbean Caucus is to remember this country's quest for independence when the time comes for us, the remaining Overseas Territories to take our place among the family of nations. The clarion call of the naysayer of independence for us is the loss of stability. My history teaches me that since 1776 the United States of America has gone from strength to strength and enjoyed growing stability and high regard at home and abroad.

My view is that that same stability can and will be enjoyed by the peoples of the Overseas Territories when independence inevitability becomes theirs. The difference will be made in the support of our friends in this country who will vouch on the world stage for our soundness of government, our commitment to the rule of law and the natural inclination of all living things to be independent.