Finance Minister Paula Cox is urging residents to adopt a more frugal approach in spending to stave off hardships as the global economic downturn starts to bite.

Ms Cox said there will be no "quick fix" to the challenges ahead but individuals can empower themselves by becoming "more conservative in our spending patterns".

Ms Cox was responding to the results of an independent survey which found fears over the economy have now overtaken crime as what people see as the biggest issue facing Bermuda.

The Research.bm poll found a fifth of voters – 22 percent – believe the economy/unemployment is the number one concern, followed by crime, 19 percent, and housing, 11 percent.

Three months ago a similar poll found crime the predominant issue, at 32 percent, with the economy/unemployment at 20 percent.

Worries over the economy are particularly prevalent among the younger generation. While only 18 percent of voters surveyed in last week's 'Political Opinions Poll' are confident in the direction Bermuda is headed, this dropped to just nine percent of 18 to 34-year-olds.

And almost two-thirds of the younger generation – 63 percent, lack confidence. This marks a jump of almost 20 percent on the last quarter, when 45 percent expressed little confidence.

Ms Cox said: "Bermuda and the residents of Bermuda are astute and they know that the ramifications of the global economic downturn will be felt in Bermuda, and are already being felt.

"So clearly at present in Bermuda, as elsewhere, there will be and is a crisis of confidence in the economy. People are concerned and are worried about the actual and potential impact on their households and income. This is the issue.

"There are fears on a personal level as to what this means in terms of job losses, and the cost of living."

She said: "There are no easy answers and it would be the height of naivete and folly to think there will be any quick-fix.

"This causes us on an individual level to be more conservative in our spending patterns and to be cautious and pessimistic."

The Minister said: "The economy is the front burner issue worldwide. This is the one issue that in recent times seems to have brought about a consensus of thinking amongst leaders around the globe.

"There is the urgent imperative to employ measures to try to tackle the economy. G-20 leaders have met and each leader is trying to find the right fix. Yet there is the realisation that there is no tried and true method, and there is no one magic bullet.

"It will take a remarkable coordination in global policy to address the economic crisis. At the domestic level we have to tiptoe through the minefields so that we avoid and avert exacerbating the problem.

"We also have to take active steps to provide a security blanket for the people who have lost jobs, and those who could lose jobs, and still maintain a sustainable economy, even if it is with a reduced level of growth given the circumstances and the challenges."