the Shadow Finance Minister said yesterday.

His claim came in a speech to business people which mocked Government for neglecting planning and failing to produce up-to-date accounts.

Government estimates the national debt at about $80 million.

But Mr. Eugene Cox told a Hamilton Rotary meeting: "If we say, as we should be saying, that any monies that the Government is liable for -- that is, money that they guaranteed for the quangos and the semi-public corporations -- is put with the Government accounts, we will find that we owe much more, we have a much greater public debt, by at least over $100 million than we presently are told.'' Mr. Cox accused Finance Minister the Hon. David Saul of declaring the recession was over in June and then doing an "about-face'' by stating last week that a recession could not be turned on and off like a switch.

This "change of heart'' justified the PLP's caution on the subject, said Mr.

Cox.

Dr. Saul had "come on as a heavy'' without having the complete picture. Mr.

Cox, a vice-president of Belco, continued: "Generally, when a country has had a recession and there have been two straight favourable months of realistic growth, then it's considered the recession is over.

"But I suspect we might have to modify that here in Bermuda because it's a small place and any considerable loss of jobs is going to be very detrimental to our Country.

"I would like to think that we will consider that when Bermudians who are out of work are gainfully employed once again, we would be then talking about the recession having ended.'' But he stated: "Bermuda has been in recession, and is now on the road to recovery.'' Mr. Cox said Government had not followed expert reports going back to 1968 that urged better training and education, equal wealth sharing and more "wholesome activities'' for youth. Such measures would have enabled the Island to cope better in a recession, he said.

The PLP view that Government policies had worsened the impact of the recession had been backed by bankers and the Monetary Authority. Government should have used the recession as an opportunity to equip Bermudians for the market place, he added.

"A PLP administration's ethos will be to train, to retrain, to re-qualify and to re-tool the local workforce, so that the large majority can be gainfully employed in the Bermuda workplace.'' Mr. Eugene Cox.