international business future, the Bank of Bermuda's chairman warned yesterday.

"There is a profound mistrust of any jurisdiction going independent at all ... There is another perception, and this I tend particularly to sympathise with, that an independent Bermuda will become totally dependent on, and subservient to the US and vulnerable to the long arm of that country's tax man,'' Mr. Eldon Trimingham told members of the Lions Club at the Princess Hotel.

Independence means little more than "new obscure flags, passports, and songs.

All it would take is one major player to say it is leaving Bermuda because of the possibility of Independence for a run from Bermuda to begin,'' he added.

According to Mr. Trimingham, a small offshore jurisdiction "plus Independence equals failure while small plus dependence equals success.'' He said the former formula was the rule.

Jurisdictions like Singapore and Mauritius were the exceptions, he said. Mr.

Trimingham, also president and CEO of Trimingham Brothers Ltd., cited a study by the Royal Commonwealth Society, entitled "Small is Dangerous,'' which claimed the international business community was well-aware of the "perceived and real horrors and the litany of disasters that are thought to have occurred wherever independence has been obtained.'' Mr. Trimingham added many people abroad had asked him about Independence for Bermuda.

He added he was not averse to the country continuing discussions on the subject in earnest, but not at the expense of the Island's business future.

Political stability was one of three major requirements for an offshore jurisdiction to be successful, he said.

The other two were a supporting infrastructure of professionals and technology, and quality amenities from hotel to air services linked to the Island's tourism industry, he continued.

"Would it not be sensible to contribute toward a solution ... the industry itself might easily provide the formula as the ultimate return will be so much to their direct benefit,'' he said.

He also said tourism must be improved, adding there was "a problem'' in that area.

The constant message Mr. Trimingham said he received from abroad was, "Do something about your hotels and restore the good service and facilities we used to expect from Bermuda.'' Tourism may bear an disproportionate amount of the Island's taxation system, he said.