of the Progressive Labour Party make for depressing reading.

The contrast with the euphoria of November, 1998, when a united and optimistic PLP finally achieved power after three and a half decades could not be more stark.

What is clear now is that there is considerable unhappiness, especially within the PLP Parliamentary group, with the leadership of the party and some of the gaffes and defeats which the party has endured in the last year.

The fact that the rumblings among discontented senior leaders have become public is worrying: it suggests that the PLP is in disarray and has lost its way.

That's a shame, given the goodwill which the Government carried with it into office and the desire of almost all sectors of the community to see it succeed.

Much of that goodwill has now dissipated.

Some of it has gone because of the considerable publicity which has been given to what has been perceived, fairly or not, as feeding at the trough by Government members.

Frequent travel, over-size cars, a luxury airport lounge for Ministers and dignitaries, arm-twisting for first class upgrades and plans to buy a grander Tourism headquarters all seem to indicate that the Government is more interested in perks than policy.

These concerns would not have such a high public profile if the Government had a better record of policy achievement since taking office.

To some extent, its slow progress reflects the push-pull challenge that the PLP has faced since it began to move to the political centre.

Meeting the needs of its grassroots supporters at the same time that it maintains business confidence is difficult and is reflected in the controversies over work permit policies and the CURE regulations.

No Government can or should be expected to make changes overnight or to deliver on all its promises in the first 18 months of a five-year term.

And this Government has had some successes. The economy, in spite of a few shudders, continues to grow. Bermuda has had considerable, albeit quiet, success in keeping Bermuda's name off the worst of the world's lists of "harmful tax jurisdictions''.

But slow progress on housing, frequent labour relations problems, little tangible evidence of change (yet) in education standards will all be a disappointment to the party's supporters. Problems with the Police and crime (now at last beginning to fall) have also raised worries. There has been progress in some of these areas, but it has often seemed to be too little, too late.

The blame cannot be laid at the feet of the Premier. Different Ministers have made bad mistakes and different politicians have made irresponsible statements. But Ms Smith is accountable for the overall direction of the Government and for ensuring that, at the very least, all of her Ministers speak with one voice. This has not been the case.

The record of the Cabinet Office in dealing with the media has made many of these problems worse, not better, and the Premier is accountable for that.

Ms Smith's appearances on television this week, in a blatant pre-emptive strike against her potential challengers, show she is more than willing to use the media when it suits her interests and to ignore it when it does not.

Regardless of whether a leadership challenge emerges in the autumn or is successful, it is now clear that the PLP is divided. That is bad news for the Country at a time when it needs stable Government.