in the House of Assembly.

And Health Minister the Hon. Quinton Edness admitted that prostitution is beginning to creep into the Island.

Mr. Edness said that prostitutes had not been a big problem in Bermuda for centuries, and if it becomes a major problem the Government will act to remove it.

The Minister was replying to a question from Shadow Health Minister Mr. Nelson Bascome during a debate on the Public Health Amendment Act 1993.

The changes concern doctors who must inform patients who they find are suffering from AIDS. Those people will then be put on a confidential list in case they are ever charged with the new crime of sexually assault with intent to spread the disease.

People with AIDS must now be told that they have the disease and required to fill in a special form. If they have sex with another person they must now, by law, inform them that they have AIDS, HIV or Hepatitis B.

Mr. Bascome said that he was worried that there would be a problem keeping the information confidential in such a small island community like Bermuda.

But he also voiced his fears about prostitutes spreading the disease to their clients. He said that they would be unlikely to tell someone that they were suffering from AIDS because it would affect their business.

He said: "These people are not going to have a sign over their heads saying `I have AIDS.' "And, if they go to court, they are going to claim that their client solicited them for their services.'' Mr. Edness said: "We have not dealt with that in this country.

Prostitution has not been a major problem but there are signs that it is creeping in and it may develop.

"This is something this country has to face. We have to find ways of containing it, preventing it or causing it to be wiped out altogether.'' He said that in other countries known prostitutes were forced to take health checks for AIDS.

Concerning confidentiality Mr. Edness said that he trusted the professionals on the Island to keep the information safe.

The Public Health Amendment Act 1993 was passed by the House of Assembly after a second and third reading, and will now go to the Senate for approval.