Britain's rewrite of relations with Bermuda is set to be announced in London in the New Year, Governor Thorold Masefield said yesterday.

The new deal for Bermuda, and the 12 other British Dependent Territories (BDTs), will be revealed by UK Foreign Secretary Robin Cook at a meeting of the Dependent Territories Association (DTA) in February.

Mr. Masefield confirmed: "Robin Cook has said he will make the announcement to the Dependent Territories then.'' And one change being pushed for by the DTA is a change of name from BDTs to British Overseas Territories.

Premier Pamela Gordon said she was aware of the planned announcement, but said she understood it would be a broad statement of intent, with individual talks then taking place with the representatives of each BDT.

She added: "I got a copy of some Dependent Territory Association minutes which indicated they were unsure that they would be able to get Robin Cook at their meeting. Robin Cook, however, will be making an announcement in February.

And she said: "If it's something where we will be allowed to give input, then I will go. You can't expect them to properly articulate Bermuda's position if representation is not made to them.'' But Ms Gordon said if it was to be a "preconceived and predetermined'' statement by Mr. Cook, Bermuda "could get it by fax or phone.'' She added she was aware of pressure to change the official classification of the UK's overseas possessions.

Ms Gordon said: "Many of these countries -- like Bermuda -- are fully self-supporting and may be offended by being called `dependent' when they are not relying on Britain in a financial way.'' The results of the massive review, which Mr. Cook promised would result in a "custom-made'' solution for the remaining outposts of the British Empire, will come only seven months after the Labour Foreign Secretary pledged to carry out a survey.

Mr. Cook added that the review, announced after controversy over the UK's handling of the volcano crisis on the Caribbean island of Montserrat, would underline Britain's continuing commitment to its former colonies.

He said: "We have to make sure there is no suspicion of any neglect by Britain. We recognise these are British territories and the people on them are a British responsibility.

"We will go through the dozen territories and produce a custom-made solution for each one.'' Bermuda -- the most populous Dependent Territory after the handover of Hong Kong to Communist China earliest this year -- is one of a handful of places still controlled by the UK, mostly small islands with a total population of around 200,000.

When the review was announced in August, Ms Gordon said one important issue for Bermuda was the granting of the same rights of entry to the UK for British Dependent Territories Citizens passport holders as that granted to full UK passport holders and European Union citizens.

She added: "If we are going to be tied to Britain, then we want a passport that means something.'' Ms Gordon added that the right to work and the right of residence should also be granted to Bermudians -- especially valuable for students, so they could work their way through college and gain valuable experience on graduation.