The Opposition has welcomed recommendations for reform suggested by British MPs — but said they should not have been necessary.

Opposition Leader Kim Swan and Shadow Minister for Legislative Reform John Barritt said: "We are encouraged by recommendations put forward by the UK Foreign Affairs Committee (FAC), and welcome the fact that its members supported concerns put to them by the United Bermuda Party.

"But we believe it is important to recognise that Bermuda should not need to look overseas for guidance on how to provide our people with more open, more accountable, more responsive government.

"Government reform is up to us. What has been missing is the political will to make it happen.

"Our concerns in this regard are heightened by the fact that Bermuda has fallen behind in best practices for modern democracies.

"Many of our Parliamentary rules and procedures are outdated, as measured against the recommended benchmarks for democratic legislatures published by the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association."

Among the points the FAC made were that conscription to the Bermuda Regiment should be phased out, Freedom of Information legislation should be passed, and Government committees should stop meeting in secret.

The Opposition duo said: "The FAC's recommendation to end secret committee meetings is important, but it is just the tip of the iceberg in terms of the reforms needed to strengthen the checks and balances at the heart of our system."

They called for measures including a code of conduct for parliamentarians, anti corruption legislation, an independent "integrity commission" setting minimum disclosure by Parliamentarians of financial dealings and an independent, bipartisan electoral commission.

"Some good governance measures can be implemented without delay.

"In this, we include Freedom of Information, which has been on the PLP Government's agenda for nearly a decade.

"There is no reason to delay this important measure any longer.

"We therefore challenge the Government to table Freedom of Information legislation at the start of the next session of Parliament. We urge them to take the lead on this fundamental issue of good governance," they said.

In a statement last night the Cabinet Office said: "This is a report to the British Government for them to address, but the Government will also study the document and consider its contents."