The United States could become involved in a collective insurance pool for those areas like Bermuda facing risk from hurricane damage, Premier Alex Scott revealed last week.

Government discussed the mechanics of a collective disaster relief fund with some insurance and reinsurance administrators in Bermuda nearly a year ago, the Premier said, at first merely in terms of the Caricom region.

However with such devastating storms as Hurricane Katrina striking the US mainland, and a strong US interest in maintaining the stability of the Caribbean region, the Premier said that the US could become involved in such a scheme as well.

The topic was discussed by the Premier with the UK Government and other British Overseas Territories heads of state at last week?s annual Overseas Territories Consultative Council in London.

?Our focus was originally on the small economies that are devastated year in and year out and are not capable of paying the premiums,? he explained.

However, ?the US can?t afford to have a destabilised Caribbean,? he added. ?Neither can the UK or other larger nations with Caribbean interests, such as Holland and France ? and neither can corporate entities with a Caribbean presence.?

The World Bank already has a fund set up to protect exposure in countries which are politically stable, he said ? that political stability being a condition of any monies coming to those countries from the World Bank. An insurance fund of sorts for Caricom and regions affected by hurricanes in the US could have a similar set up, the Premier said.