In the wake of Mid-Ocean News’ front page apology to Paragon Trust Ltd. in Friday’s edition, Premier Dr. Ewart Brown offers the following comment.

The Premier said: “It seems to me that the time has come for the Opposition and its Shadow Minister to apologise for their part in this harmful episode. I have been inundated with calls and e-mails from hard-working, law-abiding citizens who are appalled, and in some cases, afraid that their use of perfectly legal trusts could be subject to such vitriol.

“As the Bermuda Sun rightly pointed out in its Friday edition, trusts are a regular part of business and are subject to equally stringent checks in Bermuda as they are in the United Kingdom and Canada. At this stage the Opposition must apologise for its part in this erroneous and distasteful campaign and assure the citizens of this country that they are not seeking to displace perfectly legal business practices in the name of political gain.”