When Paula Cox strode into Parliament on Friday she was clutching her father's tattered old briefcase ? a briefcase that was holding its fifth Budget.

And she knew fine well she was stepping into formidable shoes, those of her late father Eugene Cox, a seasoned and much-loved politician who passed away at the beginning of the year.

His daughter, Paula, the then Education Minister and Attorney General, was chosen to follow in his footsteps and became Bermuda's first female Finance Minister on January 22.

She is now learning the ropes in her father's old corner office in the Ministry of Finance, sitting behind the same desk, with the same files lining the walls of the office.

"I don't think it has been difficult, but I think that certainly there are moments of poignancy she said in a wide-ranging interview with .

"For instance somebody gave me his stamp which has his hand-written signature, which he used to sometimes expedite and streamline his work and he stamped things, and when you see that... and it is obviously his historic scroll, it certainly gives you pause."

But Ms Cox is made of firmer stuff than to dwell on the sadness of her father's passing, and is well aware of the difficult tasks facing her. She is after all, her father's daughter.

"Its been very busy, " she said ? a slight understatement for a woman who had to come in almost cold to the most difficult portfolio around ? plus deliver a budget and deal with all the questions and grumbles that accompany it. "But it has been a surprisingly easy as a transition... not least because of the reception that was accorded to me.

"You are certainly aware that in the Ministry of Finance there is no opportunity (to make a mistake) and you can't miss a step. It is not like in other ministries when you can afford to be more light hearted or to give a very emotive response.

"You are aware that if you say the wrong thing you can do incalculable and irreparable harm to Bermuda's standing as the Minister of Finance. So it is a very sobering and salutary experience."

But this has not put Ms Cox off. In fact she has enjoyed rising to the occasion ? and the challenge of filling learning so much so quickly ? and filling her father's shoes.

"I have enjoyed it. Surprisingly I have enjoyed it very much because you are very busy, you are dealing with critical issues, you realise that what decisions you make today may impact on the future of the quality of life for both Bermudians and for Bermuda and I think it gives you a tremendous sense of responsibility.

"Besides which, as my father would have said, I was very competitive with him and as everybody seemed to think he was the ideal minister of Finance I have got to try and in time exceed his reputation. "

As a high-powered minister, she already had a good grasp of what was going on in the economy, but has had to learn to skip her way through difficult questions about finance with figures tripping off the tip of her tongue. Following the interview with , she was about to face a Financial Times journalist, with five minutes break as a breather.

When asked about the future of the economy, she was upbeat, and hinted that they had been conservative in their estimates so as not to get caught out ? a trick no doubt learned from her late father.

"Generally the signals are that portend well for this coming fiscal year. We anticipate the gross domestic product (GDP) in the US to be about 4.6 percent and other countries, particularly western European countries, to be a little bit more moderate than that, say around 2.5 or 3 percent range.

"Bermuda's GDP is expected to be between 2 to 2.5, however there certainly may be opportunities, depending on how well the US growth continues, that we may do even better."

And she said that things might be better if tourism picks up as hoped during the 2004 to 2005 season.

"We are hoping the declines in tourism we saw last year will certainly be reversed this year, with a better than usual tourism rate. I think what we have to benefit us is the fact that the euro is doing very well and we are hoping that that, coupled with some of the initiatives from the Ministry of Tourism in Europe, may cause more European tourists to come.

" think certainly the Minister of Transport in highlighting some of the increased airlift that should be coming on should hopefully make it a busy time for tourism which will be of benefit to the economy ? retailers, hospitality, industry generally."

And while she says she has not yet implemented any real changes in the ministry, bar make her office a little softer and more feminine, she has a clear vision about where she sees Bermuda in the future.

"I think in the Ministry of Finance our position is that we want to see sustained levels of growth, we are certainly seeking to add value in terms of greater accountability and continue with the expansion of the roll-out particularly of the zero based budgeting," she said.

And she will fight Bermuda's corner in terms of any Bermuda-bashing from the US ? but these efforts will not at the expense of local companies.

"As I think I indicated in the Budget statement, clearly there is also the framework for dialogue in terms of continuing with regard to the retail sector and with regard to the local business sector and I think at the same time while we are pursuing a certainly more aggressive and certainly more dynamic course with regard to some of the issues on the international front, it isn't going to be at the sacrifice of the local business."

But whatever the future holds, she is still sentimental about her father ? and will be tightly holding on to his briefcase while she is Minister of Finance. She said: "It will be the budget briefcase as long as it lasts."