The United Bermuda Party's acting leader David Dodwell said Cabinet Minister Alex Scott is misleading the public by claiming the parties were supposed to keep their suggestions to the boundaries commission a secret.

Boundaries Commission Chairman Sir Frank Blackman appeared to back Mr. Dodwell's view. He said the Commission would not publish people's submissions.

However he added: "The question of publishing submissions to the commission would be a matter for those people who submitted them. It's a matter entirely for those persons to make a decision."

The boundaries commission is assessing suggestions from the Government and Opposition over the number of MPs Bermuda should have. Currently there are 40 MPs in the House of Assembly.

Last week the PLP voted on their submission but Government backbenchers Dale Butler and Wayne Perinchief criticised the decision to keep it secret until it is debated in the House of Assembly.

Last week the UBP called on the figure to stay at 40 but they want an independent speaker rather than have the speaker provided by the Governing party.

Mr. Scott then blasted the UBP for making their submission public.

But Mr. Dodwell said: "I can state quite categorically that we were never told of a commission agreement not to release parties respective submissions publicly.

"Alex Scott is misleading the public, simply side-stepping the PLP's inability or unwillingness to be transparent. It's both a shame and very unfair to the public.

"Our view is that the public has been asking over and over for what the parties position has been.

"We promised to reveal ours and always intended to. It's been no secret from day one."

He said there was no intention to question the Commission's integrity.

Mr. Dodwell said Mr. Scott was insulting the commission by thinking it would support a party's view simply because it was made public.

"We say nonsense, the commission is capable of reaching a conclusion whether or not submissions are public or private. It is not too late for the PLP to come clean and make their submissions public."

He said the PLP had led the charge to reduce the number of MPs and should justify why it needed to be done and explain the number they had in mind.

"Tell us the numbers, presumably they have the numbers."

However Mr. Scott told said: "Why are they concerned with the PLP's views? They should be concerned with the public's view."

He said the UBP were trying to politicise the situation and he said if the Boundaries Commission was seen to be siding with the UBP then people might think they had been invited to cocktail parties and had been persuaded. He said: "That's not healthy."

Mr. Scott refused to where he had got the idea that the parties were supposed to keep their submission's secret. He said: "I don't think that's required, I didn't say anything categorical. I was the one who equivocated but Mr. Dodwell is saying he knows for a fact. I am saying it's my information, I don't say it's a fact."

"Mr. Dodwell is not on the boundaries commission."

Mr. Dodwell said his party had never been told the Boundaries Commission had made a ruling on whether parties could go public with their suggestions.

However Mr. Scott said he had heard the UBP's own representatives on the Boundaries Commission believed submissions from the parties should be kept secret. Again he refused to name his source.

But John Barritt, who along with Pamela Gordon, is representing the UBP on the Commission, said: "I don't know where Mr. Scott gets his mis-information from."

He said he couldn't comment further because it had been agreed that the chairman would speak for the Commission.