Government will not apologise for protecting Bermudians - but will make sure that there are no unnecessary barriers to the success of business on the Island according to Labour and Home Affairs Minister Terry Lister.

Speaking in response to a volley of criticism this week from the business community about term limits on work permits, compulsory overtime and the length of time it takes to process work permits, Mr. Lister yesterday said he was "shocked" to hear some of the criticism.

He said he had been working with all areas of the business community to find solutions to their grievances - and stated "categorically" that Government's policy on six year term limits on work permits will not be abolished.

But he admitted that there were concerns in the business community about term limits on work permits.

"I will continue to meet and consult with employers and their representatives to ensure that there are no necessary barriers to their continued success in the market place, but I will not apologise for making the protection of the rights of Bermudians my first priority," he said at a press conference.

The Association of Bermudian International Companies, various divisions of the Chamber of Commerce and the Bermuda Employers' Council (BEC) have all spoken out about problems their members have faced and have been critical about labour policies which they see as barriers to doing business on the Island.

But yesterday Mr. Lister came to Government's defence, saying that work permits were being processed more speedily - from between four and five weeks for new applications and about ten weeks for renewals.

The claim contradicted what many business leaders have said - that it is taking between five and six months for work permits to be processed which is adversely affecting business.

Mr. Lister said: "I was shocked to read the comments in today's (Wednesday) edition of The Royal Gazette attributed to the Executive Director of the Bermuda Employer's Council. Shocked because I have had meetings on a regular basis with not only the Bermuda Employers' Council, but many individual companies also and in particular with a subcommittee of the International Business Forum (IBF) that includes representatives of the Bermuda Employers' Council, the Bermuda Chamber of Commerce, the Insurance Advisory Committee, the Bermuda Hotel Association, Bermuda International Business Association and the Association of Bermuda International Companies. I meet with that sub-committee on a regular basis in order to address issues of mutual concern."

Mr. Lister said that Government had made a commitment to Bermudians that it would ensure that "the practice of repeatedly rolling over work permits from year-to-year so that holders become long term residents would cease -the new policy was introduced to ensure the right of Bermudians to avail themselves of employment opportunities and to enjoy the main benefits available in this country".

And he asked if the BEC wanted to return to the policy of rubber-stamping work permits "regardless of the aspirations of Bermudians" and the isolation of Bermudians from the benefits of the Island's buoyant economy.

"My mandate is to protect the right of Bermudians," he said. "As the Minister with responsibility for immigration, I would be remiss in the extreme if I failed to do so."

He agreed that bad employers were in the minority, but when well qualified Bermudians returned to the Island and were not able to get jobs, "then we will continue to delay the processing of work permits being issued in order to investigate fully the appropriateness of work permits being issued in lieu of the hiring of qualified Bermudians".

"When we have companies that have the audacity to state that they interviewed a non-Bermudians and a Bermudian who were working side-by side in the same company in the same position and the Bermudian is not qualified, we will delay the processing of work permits to allow further enquiry," he said.

He said such a case was currently before him and was being investigated, and this practice would continue until he was satisfied the right decision had been made and Bermudians had not been discriminated against.

Mr. Lister said that he continuously heard of employers repeatedly abusing employees and added that in such cases work permits would be delayed in order to carry out full investigations.

"Having said that, I do acknowledge the concerns of many members of the business community regarding the subject of work permit term limits," said Mr. Lister.

And he said he was meeting with the IBF sub-committee to thrash out the definition of "key" personnel and the way in which the new process of term limits will be processed.

"Those members are currently poling the members of their respective organisations for questions that they wish the Minister and the Department of Immigration to answer regarding this very sensitive issue," he added.

"Once these questions have been gathered we intend to form a committee to include members of the Department of Immigration and the business community to ensure that the implementation of this very important policy proceeds smoothly and with minimal impact to Bermuda's very successful economy."