Governor Sir John Vereker has called on Government to invest "more effectively" in public education ? in a speech which also appeared to criticise controversial Cabinet plans to build a new hospital in the Botanical Gardens.

The Queen's representative on the Island hit out at the low number of students graduating from public schools and questioned the quality of the Bermuda School Certificate (BSC) in his talk to the insurance industry.

Sir John also made an apparent dig at the Government's plan to put the $500 million replacement for the King Edward VII Memorial Hospital in a national park. Discussing the consequences of the Island's continuing economic growth, he said that Bermuda needed to ensure it had more of the goods that people valued in the economy.

"That may mean greater investment in health care, the arts, the sciences and sports ? all of which contribute to the quality of life without detracting from it ? and less in condos and cars," he said. "It may also mean health care that does not consume scarce open space, science which draws on local skills more than imported ones and sports that are readily accessible to those on relatively low incomes."

Sir John would not confirm later if his remark about "scarce open space" was a reference to the hospital plan. He said his comments were made in the context of a discussion about the relationship between wealth and happiness.

But there was no ambiguity to his remarks about public education. Sir John said that if Bermuda wanted to expand its economy and international business sector ? and reduce the number of ex-pat workers ? it needed to start producing a better-educated workforce.

"With some two-thirds of male students leaving the public education system without so much as a Bermuda School Certificate, we are building up problems for the future," he said.

"In terms of both the proportion leaving school with recognised qualifications and of the level of attainment represented by those qualifications, Bermuda's public system is falling well behind the UK and the US."

He said labour on the Island was not as productive as in many competing jurisdictions, adding: "We need to invest more effectively in education and in training."

Sir John said that although the insurance sector was growing in Bermuda ? with 147 companies on the Island last year, compared to 84 in 2002 ? labour, or a lack of it, could stifle a further increase.

"That is because of the small size of the Bermuda labour market; because of the often relatively poorly prepared local entrants to it and because of the limits to the social acceptability of guest workers."

Sir John later told that he had taken care in the speech, which was delivered to to the Association of Bermuda Insurers and Reinsurers on September 20, not to "trespass on the responsibilities of Bermuda Government ministers".

"In the context of looking at Bermuda's future, I can make the observation that aspects of our education system are of concern, but it isn't for me to prescribe the solutions."

He said his comments about guest workers referred to "the resentment felt by some, a minority but occasionally a vocal one, towards non-Bermudian workers".

He added: "In the longer term it is essential that Bermuda gets a better return on its investment in education, with graduates from across the school system matching world class standards."

Sir John painted a bleak future for Bermuda if the economy was allowed unrestrained growth and warned that it "should not be at the expense of the physical environment in which future generations have to live".

"Growth will make us richer, and that could make us happier, but only if we manage it carefully," he said.

He added that the Island's existing resources needed to be used more efficiently. "Our land area is small and it is right that we should preserve some of it against development. But a surprising amount of it is unused or underused."

The Premier, Education Minister and Health Minister were given the opportunity by this newspaper to respond to Sir John's comments earlier this week but had not done so by the time we went to press last night.

Shadow Education Minister Neville Darrell said he would like to see an open, transparent discussion about public education take place and information on attainment levels in schools made available.

He said: "There appears to be little motivation at the present time to address the challenges of the current system, its under-performance and the inevitable adverse impact it has on students, particularly our young males, who leave it in alarmingly high numbers unprepared for the daunting challenges of our current world."