Shadow Finance Minister E.T. (Bob) Richards told the House of Assembly of the potential damage done to Bermuda's international business reputation by the Premier's detainee decision.

"They don't like the wild card," he said of the international business sector. "They don't like surprises. The events of the past seven to ten days have caused an enormous amount of concern with international business insofar as it relates to the political risk associated with Bermuda."

Mr. Richards said the Premier's decision to resettle the four Uighurs here without consultation could mean Bermuda has to "choose between China and the United States".

He noted China's rising economic power, adding that the recent recession had barely slowed down the country's growth. He described "a big connection" between Bermuda and China, with 50 percent of the companies on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange being based in Bermuda.

In response to a comment from PLP MP Walter Roban that "Bermuda has no relationship with China at all" Mr. Richards reminded the House that HSBC (owner of the Bank of Bermuda) stands for the Hong Kong and Shanghai Banking Corporation, noting that 75 percent of the bank's pretax profits come from Hong Kong or mainland China.

"You still think we don't have a relationship with China?" he asked. "What if China blacklists Bermuda because of these actions? That alone makes his action detrimental to Bermuda, and the Premier of this country is supposed to be acting in the best interest of Bermudians."

He went on to describe the US's "fear and loathing" of perceived terrorists and detainees post-9/11, saying he believes the Premier's actions will deter American tourists from choosing Bermuda for their vacation.

To a few cheers from the gallery, he said: "This issue has the fingerprints of Independence all over it".

"This is a foretaste of things to come if we don't get back to a scrupulous following of the rule of law in this country," he added.

PLP backbencher Wayne Perinchief started his speech by asking whether it was the Cabinet, Premier, Commissioner of Police, Governor, or Attorney General who acts as Bermuda's "gatekeeper".

"Who guards our constitution?" he asked. "I put these questions for a very salient reason, because all of those institutions were abrogated or breached in the latest action by our Premier, and I do specify Premier. I do not wish to malign the Honourable Dr. Ewart Brown in his person."

Mr. Perinchief told the House that the Premier had "egregiously offended" those in office, and questioned what the appropriate response would be from Bermuda's elected officials and appointed members.

"All some of us ask is that the Premier be subject to some consequences of his actions," he said.

He called the actions of the Premier "high handed", adding: "It does actually put us all in a position of saying, 'of what value does the administration hold elected officials?' Are we just a talk shop? Do we have any teeth or are we a toothless dog?"

To applause from the public gallery and murmurs of agreement from some Opposition MPs, he noted the role of Government: "We now make the laws certainly we must uphold the laws."

He spoke of "the dictum of collective responsibility", and called the Government "liable vicariously through the actions of our Premier".

"After all, he was the one who we as Government put into that position," he said. "By that same Constitution we the members of this House have a responsibility to then say to the Governor, 'this person no longer is afforded the support of this honourable House'."

He called on the Government rather than the Opposition to carry out "corrective, rehabilitative action".

"Though we may fuss and fight and sometimes disagree, we are charged with that responsibility," he said.

He told the Government not to blame the Opposition for this recent controversy, saying: "We cannot blame anyone but ourselves in this instance. We must look in the mirror, see where the flaws are and correct them. As a team we have to pull back and exert some control and some direction over our team captain."

Opposition MP Shawn Crockwell spoke to the House about the power of Bermuda's constitution. Calling the Premier's actions over the detainees a "blatant disregard" for the constitution's authority, he said: "The constitution also restricts our powers. It provides a limit to what we are and what we can do."

He called the Premier "very unpopular", noting that his performance in approval polls have been the lowest of leaders since polls began.

He alluded to Deputy Premier Paula Cox's relative popularity, saying: "We all know who is the natural successor a certain Honourable Finance Minister."

Mr. Crockwell took issue with recent talk of a high turnout among whites to protest marches held this week, calling it "spin".

"The leader of that protest is a professed PLP member, yet we spin and we spin and we spin," he said. "This country has become dizzy by the spin."

He called the Premier's recent actions "unilateral", and closed with a question to PLP Cabinet ministers: "My question this afternoon to this Cabinet is, are you ratifying that behaviour today?"

PLP MP Michael Scott started his address to the House by letting his position on the motion of no confidence be known.

"This won't happen," he said. "Today is a debate in confidence in the Government and it will not result in the Government voting against itself."

Mr. Scott called the relationship between the UK and its overseas territories "afflicted with tension", and made a brief mention of recent controversy in the Turks and Caicos.

"The relationship is unhealthy; it is breaking down," he said of Bermuda's colonial ties to the UK. "The Foreign and Commonwealth Office better get accustomed to seeing more of this."

While conceding the controversy "should've been avoided", Mr. Scott defended the Premier's actions as "not typical of his tenure since 2007".

"By and large this appears to be a one-off action by this particular Premier on this particular front."

He also questioned Mr. Richards' portrayal of China's importance to Bermuda, calling any relationship "speculative at this stage".

"Let us not get a bloated view of ourselves," he said. "We are a dot."

He also found Mr. Richards' discussion of tourists' "fear and loathing" to be a stretch of an argument.

"I find it in no way compelling," he said, adding that while he'd seen three tourists' opinions in the newspaper, "three tourists do not a summer make, or a summer season make."

Wayne Furbert was clear from the start that, as an Independent MP, he was answerable mainly to his constituents in Hamilton Parish, and had sought their views before making a decision on how to vote.

He also expressed the importance of "internal controls", saying that as a one-time auditor he has an understanding of the need for checks and balances.

"If we don't have checks and balances in our systems, in the world, things go out of whack," he said.

He also told the House he'd spoken to the Premier, and asked him why he made his controversial decision.

"He felt it was an immigration issue," Mr. Furbert said. "Commonsense tells me it had to do with more than Immigration."

Mr. Furbert said that while many of his Hamilton West constituents wanted the Premier to go, one thing was clear from his discussions: they wanted the PLP to remain in power.

"They want him to go, but not the PLP to fall," he said. "I cannot support this particular motion based on the understanding of my own constituents."

Mr. Furbert added that he had only made his decision the night before the vote.

He made some references to his Christianity and the notion of forgiveness, and said: "I forgive the Premier for what he did."