deal being offered in British Foreign Secretary Robin Cook's White Paper says much about the mood of the Island.

And it also shows that Bermuda remains very much divided on racial grounds when it comes to major issues confronting the Island.

The survey said 52 percent of Bermudians polled were in favour of receiving British passports and were prepared to see capital punishment and judicial corporal punishment abolished in return. In addition, they also support tougher financial regulations.

Some 34 percent do not favour the British approach for a wide variety of reasons, including support for Independence and judicial corporal punishment.

Smaller minorities oppose it because of hanging or because they fear the changes to Bermuda's financial status would do too much damage to Bermuda's economy.

It is not that surprising that younger people are more in favour of British passports than their elders because the benefits are greater in terms of work experience and education than they are for those whose lives are firmly in place in Bermuda.

Nor is it that surprising that white Bermudians are generally more in favour of the move than blacks. As a rule, albeit one which is full of exceptions, white Bermudians have more family links with Britain and Europe than black Bermudians, whose family ties more often extend to North America and the Caribbean.

In addition, the cultural influences on Bermuda in the last 30 years have been strongly American, meaning that the perceived benefits of a British passport and easy access to Europe are diminished as much by ignorance as by distance.

Thus the mainly black AME church cites racial problems in Germany as a reason why a UK/European passport is undesirable; yet the same risks can be applied to the US or Canada and even parts of Africa.

What is important is that the White Paper be studied carefully for what it does say, not what it might lead to at some point in the future.

And it is also important to remember that this is not in fact a "deal''. If Bermudians choose not to seek UK passports, but Bermuda remains an overseas territory, Britain will effect the changes it wants anyway.

Bermudians may, rightly, resent being told what to do by Britain. But this should be balanced against the benefits being offered. Thus some oppose being ordered by the UK to abolish capital and judicial corporal punishment, despite the fact that no sentence for either has been carried out and it is likely that a majority of MPs would support scrapping the death penalty.

Toughening up financial regulations carry the risk of damaging the economy; but an independent Bermuda runs the risks of censure, blacklisting and pariah status as much as a dependent territory does.

Against this, the continued benefits of not being Independent remain -- Britain is still responsible for defence and foreign affairs and being an overseas territory is a compelling attraction for many businesses and visitors -- and need to be balanced against the UK's muscle-flexing.

When British passports are added to the scales, the advantage lies with accepting the White Paper's proposals.