Green Paper: a document containing ideas about a particular subject that is published by the Government so that people can discuss them before any decisions are made.

White Paper: an official government report which sets out the Government's policy on a matter that is or will come before Parliament.

The Government yesterday tabled its Green Paper on Bermuda becoming a full member of the Caribbean Community.

This has already been a fractious debate but a limited one because of the lack of information.

For months, people have been told to wait for the Government’s Green Paper. Now it is here but it is not what was advertised and it does not follow the traditional definition of a Green Paper. Instead, it is much closer to a White Paper because it effectively lays out the Government’s policy.

Far from being a discussion paper on the pros and cons of becoming a full member of Caricom, it is an argument for joining the organisation, fulsomely describing the potential advantages while dismissing any concerns.

This is not simply a question of definitions or process.

There are some good arguments for becoming more engaged with Caricom and there are some good arguments against doing so. The public deserved a full debate on the issue, armed with the facts. The Government has done the public a disservice by making this a one-sided argument.

This is especially concerning because the Government has no mandate for full membership of the organisation.

Nowhere in its platform did the Progressive Labour Party say it would pursue full membership. All it said was that it sought expanding regional trade in an effort to source more affordable food imports. David Burt, the Premier, reiterated this immediately after the election.

And yet, within months of being re-elected, the Government said it would pursue full membership and has now produced a document that essentially says it is a fait accompli.

This makes the argument of the One Bermuda Alliance and others that this decision should be decided by referendum more compelling.

Had the Government included full membership in its platform, it could argue that it had a mandate to pursue it without having to consult the electorate. But without that mandate, it cannot reasonably argue that the electorate authorised it do so. Nor can it argue that circumstances have change so much that it is necessary.

Indeed, the Green Paper, written by Home Affairs Minister Alexa Lightbourne, makes clear elsewhere that the decision on full membership has already been made: “Bermuda is advancing the process to explore and negotiate full membership in Caricom, alongside a structured public education and engagement process.

“The intention is to understand the implications fully, hear from the public and negotiate terms that reflect Bermuda’s unique circumstances.”

In other words, as far as the Government is concerned, the decision on joining has already been made. It is only the terms that need to be discussed.

This should be offensive to the general public. It is true that in representative government, the public entrusts its elected representatives to make decisions on its behalf, subject to a performance assessment by way of elections every four or five years.

But that delegation of powers is based firstly on a platform and secondly on an implicit understanding that in the absence of a platform commitment, the Government will not make major decisions concerning sovereignty without consulting the public.

It has failed to do this in this case. This is not a small thing. Mr Burt and his government are taking liberties they are not entitled to.

Regarding the arguments for joining, the Government said that the main reason was to have a vote on decisions regarding the region. It also dangles the possibility of getting foreign direct investment and financing from some countries and organisations that would be less likely to work with Bermuda otherwise.

But it admits: “The case for Caricom membership is ultimately about belonging. To stand with family is to share strength, resources and purpose.

“Full membership in Caricom means working with those who understand Bermuda best: small islands that know the cost of isolation and the value of unity.

“It is a step that honours our shared history while opening the way to a more secure, prosperous and confident future within our Caribbean family.”

This argument assumes that Bermuda stands squarely within the Caribbean. It goes to some lengths to show this.

And Bermuda does have strong ties with the Caribbean. But it also has strong ties with the US, Canada, the United Kingdom and other Atlantic islands such as the Azores.

The secret of Bermuda’s success over the centuries has been its ability to maintain strong ties with these disparate nations without tying itself too closely to any one of them.

In that sense, it has had close ties with the UK but has also maintained a level of self-government. That has not always been for the best, as students of Bermuda’s era of segregation will know, but this balance has largely been to the island’s advantage.

Its links with the UK also act as a counter-balance to the enormous influence of the US.

Ties with the Caribbean and Canada also act as checks and balances.

The question that the Green Paper should pose but does not, having already decided the issue, is whether Bermuda’s ability to straddle these different relationships is enhanced or weakened by full membership of Caricom.

There may well be advantages but the question is what does Bermuda lose in doing so? The Green Paper does not answer this question, or to the extent it does, it assumes that it will make no difference.

But this fails to take the question seriously. The paper rightly states that the US’s approach to the Caribbean has recently changed and it claims that Caricom is better able to deal with these changes as a body. But that does not seem to be necessarily true. Different countries have been forced to agree to US policies without Caricom seemingly being involved at all.

That does not mean that Caricom has no value but it needs to be part of the debate.

There is another approach. Mark Carney, the Prime Minister of Canada, recently said Canada would “pursue variable geometry”, meaning different coalitions for different issues based on common values and interests.

In many ways, this is what Bermuda has always done. The Government is not wrong that in a world where the US is less reliable and other regions are growing in power and influence, Bermuda should develop ties and alliances with others. A small island of 60,000 cannot stand alone.

But doing so means being clever and deliberate about where and how it makes its friendships. Achieving that makes it essential that the island be both clear-eyed and hard-nosed about where its interests lie and that it has all the facts to hand. The Green Paper fails to do that, and that is Bermuda’s loss.