Government reaffirmed its commitment to make public recommendations from a review by the International Monetary Fund last year on the Island?s supervisory and regulatory environment, but could not put a date on when the information will be released.

Financial Secretary Donald Scott told e: ?I can confirm that Government is committed to publishing the report once it is to hand, but I have no information as to when the IMF will complete the report other than to say that it is expected within this calendar year.?

In April, Finance Minister Paul Cox pledged Government would make the report public as it was a ?jurisdiction committed to transparency?.

The report, an example of the Island being scrutinised once again by foreign bodies, follows a visit by IMF representatives last year but has been carried out over the past two years. The findings of the IMF were originally expected by the end of March.

But in April it was said that officials from the IMF were still in a series of discussions with the Bermuda Monetary Authority.

Little is known about the IMF report and what it might contain, but earlier this year Ms Cox said that Bermuda will face further regulatory changes when the IMF?s 2003 review is published.

It was however revealed in this year?s budget that Government was transferring $3.5 million to the Bermuda Monetary Authority to make it more independent following the IMF?s 2003 Review.

In May, Governor Sir John Vereker also indicated that he had reviewed the findings of the IMF, which has been looking at Bermuda and other jurisdictions as part of its overall review of the stability of offshore financial centres.

Following the IMF visit in early 2003, Ms Cox said: ?I can say that the IMF team was impressed with many aspects of Bermuda?s regulatory and supervisory arrangements. Inevitably, there are always recommendations for further strengthening and enhancement of certain aspects of the regulatory and supervisory framework.

The IMF has made a number of such suggestions.

?Government will carefully review the detailed report and assess the recommendations before making any further comment.?

Government has previously come under fire for not making public similar reports, specifically the annex to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.

This led to fears from business and the Opposition that Bermuda had signed away some of its rights in a bid not to be put on a black list of so-called ?tax-havens?. Government said those fears were unsubstantiated, but has never released the OECD annex report.