Shadow Finance Minister Bob Richards said yesterday that he believed the national debt may have already surpassed $1 billion.

And while he said Government would have the debt attributed to the global recession, he said it is due to overspending, combined with a "not so silent migration" of international business. "In my conversations with many Bermudians, I have been told that they are very concerned with the rise of the national debt, now surely over $1 billion," Mr. Richards said.

"The only person not worried is the Minister of Finance."

He said that while our debt compared to our Gross Domestic Product might still be low, our less diversified economy means that we are more susceptible.

"Take a B52, a bomber that's designed to fly into high risk situations. It has eight engines, so of one or two or even three fail, the plane can still fly. But in single engine Bermuda, we have to avoid the risks that larger countries take because if our one engine stalls, we're going down.

"That single engine is international business. This government continues to treat international business like a pariah instead of a partner. That's like allowing water to mix in with the fuel."

He said issues like the current term limit policy were causing stress for the businesses, and the tax increase in February weakened the relationship between Bermuda and the businesses. "One of the reasons international businesses became so successful in Bermuda is because there was a working partnership with the Government, there was always consultation between the two groups," Mr. Richards said.

"February's tax increase completely blindsided international business. No wonder we are the witnessing moving of headquarters to other lands and outsourcing of back office functions abroad. These moves reduce the potential jobs for Bermudians."

Regarding the term limit policy, he said: "They are from another era. In the 70s and 80s there was this idea that we had to keep people out, to keep them from overwhelming us.

"Now we have people leaving Bermuda, and our policy is still designed to keep people out."

Mr. Richards also commented again on reports of cost overruns on capital projects, saying: "Bermudians have sometimes failed to connect the dots between government cronyism and waste and their own personal pocketbooks.

"However, the payroll tax increase earlier this year has exploded that myth. More people realise the Government piggy bank is theirs. The conduct of Government is overrun projects like Berkeley, like Dockyard, like TCD has a direct bearing on whether Government has to raise taxes or borrow more money or pay more interest.

"This government's handling of capital projects has resulted in, conservatively speaking, over $70 million in overspending, much of it under dubious circumstances. That's over two thirds of this year's tax increase."