The Bermuda First report will be made public by the end of October.

The report was launched with great fanfare in April and expected to be made public in the summer.

The 80-strong team planned to suggest strategies to stave off looming economic threats such as the decline in the construction industry, high housing costs as well as international hostility towards tax havens.

Since it was launched little has been said publicly, but yesterday co-chairs of the report Don Kramer, Gil Tucker and Peter Durhager said: "The report is in the final stages. We have been having consultative meetings for the last few weeks and expect that they will be concluded towards the middle of this month.

"As is usually the case when coordinating schedules, this process has taken longer than we had anticipated. But we believe it is an important one to follow if there is to be a principled discussion.

"It is our intention to present the report to the public towards the end of the month, establishing opportunities for dialogue and feedback."

They added that it was important to the committee to share its draft recommendations with key stakeholders who participated in the research phase of this project, as well as with those Government ministries who may be involved in implementing recommendations.

"It would be disrespectful and counterproductive to release a report that so many have worked on without its participants having a chance to see what is being recommended," they said.

Over the past few months the Bermuda First steering committee has established a subcommittee and chair for each subcommittee in each of four areas of focus — international business, tourism, economic diversification and socioeconomic foundations. The committee has also finalised a draft of recommendations, presented the draft to Cabinet and to the Opposition leadership, and begun a series of meetings to discuss draft recommendations and receive feedback.

The organisers said: "This process has been a productive one, characterised by open and honest dialogue.

"We are looking forward to concluding this phase of the project and moving on to implementation."