Opposition Senate Leader Kim Swan attacked Government's willingness to splash the cash, deriding claims by Government Senator Patrice Parris that Government was continuing to listen to the community on the Budget.

Speaking during the opening salvoes of the upper chamber's Budget debate, he said teachers, parent-teachers associations and taxi drivers had demonstrated against the Government because they felt excluded.

Report after report has been buried by the Government said Sen. Swan because it does not want to live up to promises to keep the community informed.

He said: "It's hypocritical when they present the idea that this Government is committed to listening to the stakeholders."

Government should have heeded Opposition promptings to be prudent before September 11 said Sen. Swan rather than accusing the United Bermuda Party (UBP) of scaremongering.

Now Bermuda was in the eye of the storm as the recession bit said Sen. Swan. He said: "The winds of recession are blowing around us. We have a Budget that puts Bermuda at great risk because it's a borrowing orientated Budget."

Government had spent $1.5 billion in 40 months including tax relief and was now looking to borrow another $75 million.

He said: "When will it end? It's a gambler's budget. This Government just slapped a ban on gaming machines but it will gamble with the people's money."

Government had squandered a $15 million surplus from 1998 and turned it into a projected $85 million debt said Sen. Swan.

He said: "It's the credit card mentality - spend it now."

The UBP would only spend within its means said Sen. Swan who suggested a review of social services spending and a commitment from Government not to keep returning for supplementary estimates and spending taxpayers cash by flying off the Island.

He said: "If you logged the frequent flyer miles it would be a small wonder if they still considered themselves in touch with working class people."

In response to the call for Government to trim its sails and follow UBP style belt tightening Government Senator Michael Scott retorted: "Nothing would get done again under the UBP."

Sen. Swan said tourism was at the whim of politics in the current arrangement and he repeated his call for a tourism authority.

Independent Senator Walwyn Hughes said Bermuda would continue to lag behind the US economy and the effect would be obvious in tourism.

He questioned a redefinition of the statistics which calculated Gross Domestic Product (GDP) which had given a massive paper windfall as the GDP figure leapt from $2.8 billion to $3.5 billion - an increase of 25 percent. He said the figure should be treated with caution.