The United Bermuda Party was accused of "trotting out the ridiculous" by the Senate leader yesterday as the Opposition continue to question Government's travel spending habits.

Sen. David Burch said he could not tell what objective the criticism was intended to serve as, while the Opposition asked Cabinet Ministers to provide details of their overseas travel for Government over the past year in a Parliamentary question, they did not offer any analysis of the spending when they got the information.

While the combined travel spending detailed by the Ministers totalled more than $373,000, Sen. Burch said that was just a fraction of the amount the UBP spent on travel while in Government.

Sen. Burch pointed to the 1998 Auditor General's report in which the former Government was chastised, specifically, for its travel spending.

The Auditor General looked at the travel spending of six Government departments and the Cabinet Office and found $2 million was spent on travel, Sen. Burch said.

Meanwhile, the overseas travel over the past year for Government accounts for only 19 percent of that amount.

Of the eight overseas trips that Premier (Jennifer Smith) took, he added, five of those trips were the very same ones her UBP counterpart took when they were in Government.

Sen. Burch also said he wanted to correct the misinformation that Government always travels in first class.

Ministers travel in business class, he said, and would only be in first class on flights where business seats were not available.

"What is you point," he asked. "Obviously you are trying to make the point that we are far more frugal."

Government Senator Calvin Smith suggested, however, that the UBP may be getting bad advice from its American advisors.

He said that may be the reason their criticism of Government relies on personal attacks, gossip and anecdotes.

"They (Americans) like to get down to the anecdote, the personal, the gossip," he said. "They do that all the time."

Sen. Smith said he expected the practice would get "down and dirty" as the election nears.

And he said there seems to be a suggestion that the PLP are only travelling for fun rather than a recognition they are conducting the people's business.

And he tackled a comment from UBP Senator Kim Swan that Government was "on a cocktail circuit" while crime problems have been allowed to fester.

He said there have always been cocktail parties before ever major event both under the UBP and the PLP.

"Now we're making 'cocktailing' a bad thing," he said. "It must be having an effect though because now at our gatherings we don't even have liquor."

The Opposition's tactics are "very, very, very annoying," Sen. Smith said.

But, Sen. Smith said he was pleased with the level of debate in Parliament on Friday on Bermuda becoming an associate member of Caricom.

"One or two (UBP MPs) stood up and made very serious arguments," he said. "It made me think, why can't you do that down in the Senate."

Sen. Smith said he did not believe Bermudians - particularly those that looked like him - would respond well to the gossip and innuendo.

He said most Bermudians are related and the tactic is likely to backfire on the UBP in the next election.