The economy is now considered one of the top three issues facing Bermuda for the first time, according to a new poll.

Crime remains the public's number one concern following several months in which violence has dominated the headlines — but the economy/unemployment has now overtaken housing and education for second place.

Seventeen percent of people say they have confidence in the Island's economy, with 48 percent saying they don't and 35 percent neutral, in the survey by Research.bm.

And as Bermuda looks to cope with the global economic downturn, Premier Ewart Brown's performance approval rating has fallen four percentage points from 22 percent to 18 percent.

Meanwhile, Deputy Premier and Finance Minister Paula Cox has seen an increase in popularity, with 75 percent of people now having a favourable impression, up from 71 percent three months ago.

The United Bermuda Party continues to struggle, with just four percent approving of its performance since last December's General Election.

Leader Kim Swan's favourability has gone down from 36 percent to 30 percent, with deputy Cole Simons dropping from 35 percent to 27 percent.

Research.bm interviewed 400 people over the telephone last month, giving a survey with a 4.9 percent margin of error.

Until recently, housing and education have consistently been much more of a concern than the economy, with residents complaining about the shortage of affordable homes and failing public schools system.

However, the economic situation in the US and its possible effect on Bermuda now appears to be an even greater worry.

Asked what was the biggest issue facing Bermuda today, 32 percent said crime, 20 percent economy/unemployment, 19 percent housing, nine percent education, two percent racism and two percent tourism.

Regarding their confidence in the direction of Bermuda's economy, interviewees gave a ranking of one to five, with five meaning "very confident" and one "not at all confident".

Six percent gave the maximum score of five; 11 percent gave four out of five; 35 percent gave three out of five; 31 percent gave two out of five; and 17 percent gave one out of five.

The older age groups were the most worried, with 28 percent of people aged 55 and above saying they were not confident at all.

In a poll just last year, nearly two thirds of people — 65.6 percent — described Bermuda's economy as either good or excellent.

That survey was carried out shortly after Ms Cox had stated that thanks to the booming economy Government was raking in far more revenue than projected for the fifth Budget in succession.

At that time, some warned that despite this the economy was overheating.

Shortly after this year's near $1 billion Budget, Shadow Finance Minister Bob Richards accused Government of failing to cut its cloth according to its resources, warning the recession in the US could harm the Island.