The choice that you make on December 17 will be one of the most important in the life of this country.On that day, having endured five years of unemployment, soaring debt and violent crime under the current Government, you can cast a vote for hope and change for a party with new leadership, new ideas and a vision to get Bermuda moving forward in a new and better direction.With more than 3,300 Bermudians unemployed including a staggering 36% of young people out of work with a national debt that is nearing $1.5 billion and a violent crime rate that was almost unthinkable just a few years ago, Bermuda needs change.My colleagues and I in the One Bermuda Alliance can put Bermuda back on the road to recovery.We are committed to providing social and economic equity for all Bermudians that means good-paying jobs, safe neighbourhoods and great schools. We will leave no one behind.We will be a government that grows jobs. We will set job-creating targets and commit to deadlines you can hold us to.We will stimulate investment, create opportunity and restore the confidence in Bermuda that is so essential for economic revival, while being prudent and disciplined with respect to government spending so that we can bring the level of indebtedness back to a sustainable and manageable level.We will be a public safety government, making sure the police get all the resources they need, bringing forward new ways to fight crime and defeat the conditions that feed it. We will make your streets and homes safer.We will be a government that makes sure your children get the education they need expanding opportunities for technical education, remedial support and pre-school entry; and supporting teachers to make it happen.We will be a public service government, operating from a foundation of fairness for all, in everything. We will put in place laws, regulations and best practices all the architecture to give you a government you can trust; a government that is open in its work, transparent in its spending and accountable for its performance.We will take concrete, well-defined steps to make Bermuda more affordable for families, recognising that the high cost of living imposes a tremendous financial burden on Bermudian families.We will get the job done.While we have a plan to grow jobs, and look forward to a more prosperous, secure and unifying future for every Bermudian, the current Government is determined to keep things as they are using the divisive politics of the past, and having no economic recovery plan, no jobs plan, and no hope for families struggling to make ends meet.The failure to address the serious economic challenges facing Bermudians is the sign of a Government that is out of ideas and out of gas.We see two reasons for the lack of action.The first is the Government’s massive debt, rising some 700% since 2005 to nearly $1.5 billion.Debt interest payments this year total $85 million that’s $240,000 a day in interest payments all going to overseas creditors rather than to Bermudians here at home.The second reason for the Government’s lack of action on the economy is its denial of responsibility and reality.For years now, the Government has refused to acknowledge the damage its policies and actions have caused, including unpredictable tax increases that broke a bond of trust with international business, tourism marketing failures, and a poorly conceived term limit policy that damaged the Island’s business reputation while doing little to protect Bermudian jobs.Instead of leveling with the people that there is a tremendous amount of work to be done here at home, the Government told Bermudians that our economic difficulties are all due to the “global economic downturn”.The so-called global recession became the Government’s cover for the failure of its policies and it begs the question: If you can’t acknowledge a problem exists, how can you be expected to fix it?It’s time for change.The OBA will exercise leadership that puts the people of this country first. We will get the job done to make our Island work better for families, students and seniors, businesses and entrepreneurs.We understand the problems because we have been listening our plans are built on the thousands of conversations we’ve had with you, on the doorstep, at your clubs and in your homes.In the days and weeks ahead, the Government will do all it can to tear down, spin and distort what we say. But you already know better than to believe everything you hear from this Government.No amount of spin can restore the faith, hope and confidence that have been worn away by unemployment, violence and national drift.The OBA will renew that faith and hope. And we will revive confidence restoring prosperity to the economy and security for Bermuda’s families.That’s the brighter future for Bermuda that we can all believe in.