Government has been taken by surprise with news of lukewarm support for its Caricom bid among the ruling party's back bench.

And, according to Health Minister Nelson Bascome, the head of Government's Caricom committee, the parliamentary motion on Caricom was mistakenly taken off the House of Assembly's agenda of items for debate.

Six of the Progressive Labour Party (PLP) backbenchers reported this week that they were undecided about their positions on Caricom and another, Neletha Butterfield, declined to reveal her position.

The news came on the eve of what most believed to be the long awaited parliamentary debate on Government's bid for Bermuda to become an Associate Member of the regional body.

But the item was dropped from the Order Sheet because the three-month limit expired on Friday. Yesterday Mr. Bascome said that he had fully expected to have the debate take place today and that the motion had been killed in error.

He explained that another House rule allows the motion to stay on the Order Sheet if a document directly related to it is tabled within the three-month period.

Friday would have been the last day the Caricom motion could be debated, but Minister Bascome tabled the Caricom Committee's discussion paper which had been promised before the debate.

“It will be back on the order sheet,” said Mr. Bascome.

Others disagree with Mr. Bascome's interpretation of the rules, saying that he should have moved a motion asking for an extension beyond the three-month limit. House Speaker Stanley Lowe could not be reached for comment this week.

In any case, the confusion is expected to be sorted out when the House of Assembly meets today, and Government needs the extra time to deal with what sources say is an unexpected and baffling turnaround among the backbenchers.

Two of the Caricom sceptics, Derrick Burgess and Dale Butler, actually sit on the Committee established by the Premier last year to spearhead the initiative and educate the public.

Mr. Bascome declined to go on the record with his reaction yesterday, saying he needed to talk to PLP MPs first.

The Opposition has already gone on record to say that they will not be supporting the Caricom bid when it does come up for debate.

Government could bypass the parliamentary process and forge ahead with its Caricom application, given that back bench support cannot be counted on. But Mr. Bascome said that is out of the question.

“The promise was that it would be debated in Parliament and that basically is what we are doing,” he said.

Most of the balking backbenchers cited a perception among their constituents that “internal” issues needed to be sorted out first as reasons for their indecision, fuelling speculation that differences with Premier Jennifer Smith may be at the root of divisions over Caricom.

In May, the same group of six backbenchers was reported to have voted in favour of a motion asking Ms Smith to resign.

“I would want to reflect on what they feel are the internal problems that are affecting something they believe in,” said Minister Bascome.