The Government Mirrors programme for at risk young people "will always be necessary in Bermuda", according to Government Senator Marc Bean.

His comment was made in response to questions posed by Opposition Senator Jeane Atherton who asked if there would be a time when the Island would no longer need such a programme.

Sen. Bean said: "It has taken 400 years to create the social problems that face this Island and will take even longer to fix them. This country suffers from a social disease and the Mirrors programme will always be necessary in Bermuda."

And Mirrors was hailed as a success by Junior Minister of Health Thaao Dill who revealed during a Budget debate on Friday that the programme has been allotted $2.5 million in funding this year.

"I could not recommend this programme more," said Sen. Dill, who is an active member of Mirrors. "If you want to be a more productive member of society sign up for Mirrors. I can personally attest to the effectiveness and transformative power that the programme has."

He said the CedarBridge and Berkeley programmes implemented by Mirrors had also been a success.

The Mirrors programme aims to encourage young people to take full advantage of educational opportunities presented to them and according to Sen. Dill it has been extremely successful.

"The vast majority of participants have expressed satisfaction with the programme and survey results show that Mirrors graduates are having more trusting relationships with their peers and are making better lifestyle choices," said Sen. Dill.

According to Sen. Dill the Mirrors programme has a 92 percent success rate and 79 percent of Mirrors graduates have found employment.

He added that there is some evidence that Mirrors has helped reduce the local crime rate and has increased the number of students seeking higher education.