of Parliament hypocrites and told them she was tired of their complaining when they hold Government contracts.

Ms Webb said that UBP MP Alan Marshall had complained to her that he did not win a $3 million Government contract for irrigation.

Ms Webb in defending her personal use of the GP car assigned to her ministry, pointed out that she was always the Telecommunications Minister.

"When am I not a Minister? There is no time in my life when I am not,'' she said.

"I am a Minister when I take my daughter to school and I talk to other parents and people there and I talk to people when I am at the grocery store,'' she added. "I am not apologising.'' Ms Webb held that black people were above feeling that they were better because of the type of car that they drove and charged the UBP with being prejudiced.

"They think all of a sudden you've let the niggers off the plantation and they cannot see the prejudice in their comments,'' she said.

Ms Webb further charged the UBP with believing "that we are inferior''.

"It is inherent in what they say to us and by questioning what we did, which is the same thing that they did,'' she said.

Responding to comments on ministerial salaries Ms Webb pointed out that her salary of about $4,000 per month, was not enough to cover her mortgage. She pointed to Dr. Grant Gibbons, David Dodwell and Michael Dunkley, calling them "the landed wealthy gentry'' and saying that if she had their financial positioning she would donate her ministerial salary to charity.

Holding that the UBP kept raising the issue of the larger GP cars because they were "upset'' the business was given to Peugeot, Ms Webb said: "People should come here and be honest.'' PLP backbencher Dale Butler called on the Opposition to express concern on important issues such as drugs, senior citizens, education, living space and sustainable development, teen pregnancy, wages, child abuse the need for retraining and the role of churches. He said: "We have to keep this country moving and the real issues are contained in our platform and throne speech.'' Speaking to the UBP MPs he said: "You are doing a first class job of continuing to drag your own hole.'' But UBP MP Dr. Grant Gibbons said the personal attacks levied by the Government members were only an indication that they (the UBP) were on target.

"We feel this Government confuses the public interest with their own interest,'' he said.

He charged that they were behaving in much the same fashion as the General Motors did when they had their motto "what's good for GM is good for America''.

"They feel what's good for Government is good for Bermuda,'' he said and charged that the Government should "come out and say it''.

"To try to rationalise oversized cars being in the public interest, I just don't see it,'' he said.

And Dr. Gibbons pointed out the difference when the UBP was in power was that they brought the issue to the House of Assembly for debate.

Dr. Gibbons also sought to raise the controversial issue of reported interest by the PLP to purchase the luxury Pitts Bay Road home "Cragmore''.

Finance Minister Eugene Cox and Works and Engineering Minister Alex Scott both denied that Government submitted any bids on the property and Mr. Cox called for Dr. Gibbons not to be allowed to continue his line of discussion as it was "based purely on supposition''.

Opposition Leader Pamela Gordon changing the mood of the debate, conceded that the PLP were running the Government differently from the way in which the UBP did, and she admitted that was causing much of the difficulty on issues.

She noted that GP cars had always been contentious for the Bermudian public and recalled heated debate over the issuance of a car specifically for the Premier.

But Ms Gordon suggested that the Government in the interest of "transparency'' and "public perception'' bring matters before Parliament.

In response to Mr. Butler's comments, Ms Gordon informed the House that her party would be bringing substantive issues of their own to the House and called for the Government not to derail them because of their origin.

"I believe that certain issues, like education and Police should be above the body politic,'' she said.

Ms Gordon also noted that if Government informed them of issues and changes then they "would not have to go on week after week'' on the same topic "when it can be handled in a simple statement''.

Ms Gordon called on Government to take what she called "a pro-active stance'' on the reporting of personal spending during business trips.

"If Government will take a pro-active stance it will save a lot of aggravation,'' she said.

Renee Webb