that it was not moving fast enough in 1999, decided to turn up the pace of change in the year 2000.

Or it could be that a year after taking power, it felt sufficiently comfortable in government to begin to push through some of the changes it had promised in the 1998 election campaign.

Regardless of the reasons, the last 12 months have been active, both in politics and in the country as a whole.

CURE regulations, proposed changes to work permits, long term residents policy, proposals for alternatives to incarceration and the "big one'', Constitutional change, have occupied the community.

In the economy, the Island has seen a mixed performance in tourism, with declining arrivals and spending countered by the flickering hope that new construction will spur the industry in the future. Nonetheless, a true recovery seems years away.

International business, too, has a mixed record, with strong company registrations and the relocations of several insurance and telecommunications companies to the Island countered by a mixture of layoffs and departures of others.

All in all, the economy has been flat rather than vibrant, and the recent signs of economic weakness in the US after a decade of growth do not bode well.

In Government, Finance Minister Eugene Cox can look back with some satisfaction at his record, having seen international regulators give guarded approval to Bermuda and for having kicked off the beginning of the end of protectionism with the grant of the 60/40 exemption to the Bank of Bermuda.

Elsewhere too there is good sprinkled with bad. Overall crime rates are down and Police manning is up. The leadership of the Service is settled and seems to be in good hands.

But the Serious Crimes Inquiry also revealed continued weakness in the administration of the Police Service, and the need for more reform.

There are signs that public services are overburdened. A long overdue crackdown by the courts on warrants and unpaid fines results in overcrowding in the prisons, and protests by prison officers.

There has been improvement in public education standards, but much more needs to be done.

In race relations, it is hard to tell if the Island is going backwards or forwards. The antipathy for long term residents has to be measured against the open mindedness and tolerance displayed in other public debates.

And yet the Government is too quick to play the race card when it is under pressure, especially when it is being accused of taking up perks. The damage done by racism and discrimination is too severe for it to be used as an excuse by politicians caught with their hands in the cookie jar.

Racism, a perceived lack of consultation, xenophobia, the sense that you are threatened in your own home even when crime rates are going down. All these things stem from fear; fear of retribution, fear of the loss of jobs or livelihoods, fear of Big Brother watching you.

The Government and the whole community would do well to attempt, together, to build a sense of trust: Trust in Government, trust in individuals' motives, trust in each other. That would be a memorable achievement.