Premier Alex Scott will be leading the charge for a better working relationship between Government and the media.

And he promised that he will rarely, if ever, criticise the media.

"I'm going to be work very diligently to make sure that we become proactive rather than reactive," he said. "Rather than waiting for a headline in The Royal Gazette, we are going to probably anticipate a view and a concern and we will be getting the word out there."

He said: "I have tried over the years and probably have failed, but I certainly will not fail as Premier - to let the press do its job without too much criticism of the media. "They will be encouraged to have a free flow of ink, in the case of the press, and in the case of the electronic media sound bite after sound bite. I hope we can manage our press by our works and how we manage our business."

He added that it was most important to win the confidence of the public "and the conduit to the public is the media and therefore it means that I must ensure that we have the best possible relationship. Of course, we will get a bad headline here and there, but it goes with the responsibility".

As Premier, Mr. Scott has responsibility for the Department of Communication and Information (DCI). "It's amazing how it becomes an egg and chicken - you get good press, you work harder. You get bad press, you go on your back foot (in cricket idiom) and you start looking at the messenger rather than the message. So I'm going to encourage all of the Ministers to use DCI more, be mindful of the task that the press have to do and also to be responsive when they want to have an interview."

Selecting the new Cabinet was a "challenge," said the Premier. "Obviously a Cabinet needs experience so while casting the net for new blood, I could not and did not overlook some of the experienced Cabinet Ministers that will take on some of the larger responsibilities."

And he had made sure to include women because "we as men may miss some of the points that some of the female members of Cabinet can fasten on and bring to our attention".

"And then, obviously you want to send a signal of the overall Cabinet - its look and what it says. And I hope it says this Premier looked at everything possible.

"I did not go in saying `I'll take two of those, three of those and everything will be even'. I looked at the task at hand and the individuals I felt at this time could assist us. But it may mean that somewhere down the road we adjust the team. We're going to be judged by the job we do. And it is at that point that I want the public to judge us."

Asked how much consideration he gave to ensuring that the Cabinet was a mixture of the two different factions of last weekend's power struggle, he said, that he had enough support from the parliamentary group to select his Cabinet without letting their differences of opinion impact adversely on the selection process.

"If I was hamstrung by those who believe `a' and those who believe `b' then could I put the best team in the field? There are talented people sitting and I hope ready to come forward and contribute," he said.

"They allowed me a free hand and I hope I didn't do an injury to their trust and their confidence when they said `listen we support you in anything and everything we are about to do'."

Asked whether Bermuda's relationship with Caricom should be a ministerial responsibility, he said: "Maybe. Maybe that's the next step. I'm still on a learning curve as Premier."