Shadow Transport Minister Erwin Adderly criticised Government for not addressing the taxi drivers' strike during yesterday's sitting of the House of Assembly.

The afternoon had been taken up with a motion on the Alternatives to Incarceration programme. "As with the Berkeley construction site, we asked questions and we've been given no answers," he said. "Is the word taxi banned in this House? "

About ten striking taxi drivers sat in the public gallery during the motion. He said that the strike was costly to the public as well as the drivers, and passengers were being inconvenienced.

"The community has been extremely disadvantaged and yet we have not heard one word from the government in terms of what they plan to do."

And he demanded to know what Government had done to avert the strike. He said Government could not make a statement because the drivers had lost confidence in them. The drivers were expecting that their proposals on improving service without implementing the GPS system would be considered before Government tabled the GPS legislation, he said.

Mr. Adderly read a letter from the Premier to Bermuda Taxi Operators Association (BTOA) president Gordon Flood, which acknowledged an "ongoing discussion" and that the Association would work with the dispatch companies to improve service and present an alternative plan to the Ministry of Transport.

Mr. Adderly said that the BTOA had presented the plans in early May but the GPS bill was tabled two weeks later.

"A strike doesn't help anybody," he said. "A strike should have been held off at all costs." Government had sat back and "allowed the matter to fester", he said.

And he accused the Government of behaving with "total arrogance" over the matter.

Telecommunications Minister Renee Webb said that the Opposition was attempting to pit the taxi drivers against the Government.

She said Government had a right to make sure the public gets decent transportation and a number of taxi drivers would resist the introduction of the new technology.

She added that she sympathised with the taxi drivers but service had to be improved. And she spoke of having to wait 45 minutes for a taxi at the airport, when she made the "unfortunate decision" not to leave her car there.

In the end she said she had to call a friend to pick her up. "People can't get where they want to go - this is what we mean by lack of service in a tourist jurisdiction."

She made it clear that she was not against the taxi drivers. "We have excellent taxi drivers in this country. They are truly ambassadors. For the most part taxi drivers in Bermuda have a good reputation."

While it takes a considerable investment to get into the taxi business, one might expect they should be allowed to get on with it without much interference, she said. But they are licensed to provide a public service so it's not that simple.

And using the controversy over CableVision's converter boxes as an example, she said Government was duty bound to step in when the public had serious concerns.

She said it was "normal human behaviour" to resist new technology, and secretaries had complained when computers were introduced.

Taxi drivers had the right to strike and they were standing up for their rights. "It's their right as citizens to demonstrate their displeasure," the Minister said.

She said : "Because I'm not afraid of new technology it doesn't mean they have no rights." And she acknowledged that GPS would be an "irritant" to some.

But the country had to look at the "bigger picture", she said.

Shadow Tourism Minister David Dodwell said the taxi dispute on Friday was not about what system to be used but "poor communication" between Government and the drivers.

The drivers felt "betrayed" because Government had "trashed" them before considering their alternatives.

He questioned what kind of message was being sent to tourist if the airport was almost brought to a standstill.

PLP MP and Bermuda Industrial Union President Derrick Burgess said the UBP was no friend of labour, despite taking up the cause of the taxi industry.

The problems of not having taxis and the hotels and airport had been going on for years, yet the UBP did nothing about it and they have no answers now, said Mr. Burgess.

"The buck must stop, there must be a solution. If our tourists can't travel about the country, that's a bad experience and it (undermines) what the Tourism Minister is trying to do," he said.

UBP MP Jamahl Simmons, said the PLP government was like the Egyptian Pharoah whose "heart was hard and stubborn and he would not listen to them".

He urged Government to compromise and bring the industry "back from the precipice".

He said: "You could have a million petitions and a million strikes and if this government wants to do it, it will happen. That's the system.

"But just because you can do something doesn't mean you should do something."

UBP whip Maxwell Burgess urged Government to withdraw the legislation forcing drivers to accept the global positioning satellite (GPS) system until talks with drivers were complete.

"I believe that common ground can be found. It will take work, but it usually does," he said.

"The 20th Century way of negotiations was winner takes all, but in this century, there should be a win-win approach where the best ideas from both sides are used.

"We have a government that refuses to listen and don't know how much longer the people of Bermuda will have to suffer this.

"It's simply not right to say `I don't care what the industry thinks, I've got my mind made up and I don't want to turn back'."

Government whip and former BIU President Ottiwell Simmons said the drivers' strike had been a "wake-up call".

"I've spoken to the Minister (Dr Ewart Brown) and I know he is seeking a resolution. The Minister wants to ensure that this country has the best taxi service in the world," he said.

"The taxi drivers have given the same point of view of the Minister. This will be resolved and I would ask that no one interferes with the work of the minister and the taxi drivers and we'll have a win-win situation."

UBP Health and Family Services spokesman Michael Dunkley said Bermuda had slid downhill since 1998.

The PLP promised to cure the Island's housing woes yet Bermuda Housing Corporation was embroiled in a scandal now involving the Police.

"How can the Housing Corporation have been allowed to deteriorate without the relevant people responsible knowing what was going on? Why didn't the Housing Minister know about this? How can he be asleep at the wheel?"

He accused Government of lack of leadership in transport, tourism and housing.

Taxi drivers and hotel workers were feeling the pinch, yet Government was trying to "mislead the people. They will have their way in a few short months - the people will have their say," said Mr. Dunkley.

PLP backbencher Reginald Burrows said his party "inherited a sinking ship and it is taking us much longer that we expected.

"The taxi situation and the Housing Corporation, these things haven't just happened, they've happened for years."

UBP Legislative Affairs spokesman John Barritt said taxi drivers were struggling to make ends meet yet Government was "grinding them down".

He called on the PLP to withdraw the global positioning satellite legislation until it had completed talks with the drivers as a sign of good faith.

"I hope Government finds within itself some to give us some of the fine fancy footwork as we had with the St. George's Police Station," he said.

Acting Transport Minister Dennis Lister said Bermuda's taxi drivers were some of the best in the world and great ambassadors for the Island.

"But there are problems in the taxi industry and Government and the Minister (Dr. Ewart Brown) are trying to address that and trying to bring the standard of the industry up to the level of the taxi driver - the best in the world."

He said the strike on Friday was a concern about how it affected people on the Island. Government had tried to ensure that tourists arriving at the airport did not have an entirely negative first impression of Bermuda.

Mr. Lister said he "applauded" the taxi drivers who worked and Government which tried to provide alternative transport.

"We are concerned about tourism, that's why the issue of trying to improve the standard of the taxis is a real issue," he said.

He announced that Government and the taxi industry will be meeting today.

Shadow Home Affairs Minister Patricia Gordon-Pamplin said the PLP was "segregating" and taking Bermuda back to the bad old days when people were afraid to speak up for fear of recriminations.

"We have retrogressed to the ways things were long before (where there is the threat) to get rid of people, people are afraid to open their mouths to make statements and they are afraid to be identified as people who make complaints," she said.

"We have to represent everyone, whether they are labour or management, black or white or with pink polka dots, and stop playing games with people, and unfortunately I don't see that prevailing with this Government."

Tourism Minister David Allen accused the UBP of a "political outpouring of opportunism" in their concern for taxi drivers.

Government was trying to mediate with the drivers while the Opposition was trying to "rev it up and push the dagger in" because they were afraid the issue might be resolved.

The Opposition portrayed themselves as having the "milk of human kindness" yet shadow Tourism Minister David Dodwell would only allow certain drivers to take his guests at The Reefs to the Airport, Mr. Allen claimed.

Labour and Home Affairs Minister Terry Lister said Government had listened to what the taxi drivers were saying and was preparing to meet them.

Public protests were fine because that was what democracy was all about.

"Sometimes you can do it in the backroom, sometimes in the boardroom, and sometimes it has to be on the street," said Mr. Lister.

"Everyone in this country has the right to express their voice. (Patricia Gordon-Pamplin) says people are afraid to speak up. That bothers me because we had a few years back black people afraid to speak up because they could lose their jobs or lose opportunities if they spoke up.

"There is no one on this side (of the House) who can take their jobs or call in their mortgages, and people should feel free and they do feel free."He said there were delays in processing work permits because there were so many going through, but this was because the economy was so successful.

Government had to balance knowing that for every foreign worker brought in for international business or the hotel industry, would place a greater strain on the housing situation.

Every Bermudian who wanted to work can work and Government was committed to getting every Bermudian reaching the top of their ability stream.

UBP Environment and Women's Rights spokeswoman Kim Young rose to say that the taxi dispute was not about fear of technology but about people's livelihoods.

"This is their livelihood - are they going to be able to feed their families ? Are they going to be able to send their children to school ? This is not about change. This is about money."

And she supported earlier calls for a "cooling off period" and more consultation with the taxi industry.

"What we need are good ambassadors for Bermuda," she said.

Ms Young added that Government must be "dreaming" if it think that technology would improve standards in the industry.

Mrs.Young slammed Government for not releasing the report into PLP MP Arthur Pitcher's removal of asbestos at Southside - almost two years after it was ordered by Health Minister Nelson Bascome.

She said the report, if it is ever released, is "going to be a sham and a cover-up of what that investigation should have been."She said the report would be a bland look at how asbestos removal procedures are now, rather than finding out if Mr. Pitcher's firm had broken the law and endangered the lives of residents at Southside.

She said the health of residents could be suffering already and the report should be a reference point which will allow them in the future to pinpoint exactly what happened.

"The report should be there in black and white. The report, when their health deteriorates, they should be able to look at that report," she said.

The Auditor General was also called into question by the ruling party. Government backbencher Stanley Morton asked the Speaker to explain whether the Auditor General was expected to submit the report to him or the Governor.

"And is he also permitted to submitted any kind of report?" House speaker Stanley Lowe said that the document was confidential and should not be made public until it was presented to him.

"Perhaps I should not have allowed anybody to mention the word BHC," he said. "It's a confidential report and when that confidential report comes to this House, it becomes a public document."

Attorney General Dame Lois Brown Evans said that the Opposition should respect the Office of the Auditor General.

She said the UBP was engaged in rumour mongering and will probably continue to do so even when the BHC investigation is completed.

"It is my regret that the members of the Opposition, for political reasons have constantly dragged the Auditor General's name, if not his position, into this matter to make political hay."

She said : "I would have thought that he would demand he gets the respect from the public, from politicians, civil servants and government boards - that goes with his title."

Dame Lois also reminded her colleagues that the Auditor General had sworn an oath of secrecy.

"I would have thought that it would behoove him not to be giving letters to the Opposition... If we then make it a political football we could say he's lying."She said she had not seen the letter and that Mr. Denis had given the report to the right person - the DPP.

She said the UBP had engaged in maligning people with their interpolations. "It is the behaviour of desperate individuals... I am sure the UBP sees their chances of winning the next election dwindling."

She said the Government was collectively responsible. "After 30 years in the Opposition I am prepared to accept the responsibility of the Government."

She reminded the House that the Government acted quickly to order an investigation into the Housing Corporation.

"If it is ever cleared up and everybody's name is cleared the rumour mongers in this country will still be accusing people of corruption," she said.

"This Government does not have any reason to be corrupt. I don't think the UBP is all that clean. But it wasn't open to the scrutiny and democracy we now have."

Premier Jennifer Smith said she stood by her letter to the BTOA president.

"I noticed the sleight of hand when (John Barritt) got up and said that they gave a draft to the Minister of Transport. He never mentioned the Premier," she said.

She said she had received a letter from Gordon Flood last week and had referred it to the Transport Minister "so when I respond I respond out of knowledge and fact". She said there were divergent views about the GPS initiative in the taxi industry.

Some people were in favour of what Dr. Brown had originally proposed, others in favour of what is currently on the table and still others who don't want any changes.

"The Minister of Transport has said he's willing to sit down and talk at anytime," the Premier said. "The acting Minister has repeated that and the taxi drivers have indicated to Labour Relations that they are willing to meet."

She said when the bill is debated there will be "ample time to clearly talk about the facts, rather than misinformation that is clearly propagated on the other side."

The Premier backed remarks made about the role of the Auditor General saying "There certainly appears to be a different application of the law as it pertains to the Opposition pre-1998 and post 1998."