Bermudans Plan Vote On Independence

Bermuda will vote this summer on whether to end 375 years of colonial ties to Britain.

The 11-member Senate of this colony of 60,000 people in the midAtlantic voted Wednesday to authorize the referendum on independence. The lower House of Assembly approved it last month. The vote is scheduled for July.

Polls show public support for independence is growing, but business leaders want to retain British rule. They say it will help the island’s status as a tax-free banking, insurance and corporate center.

Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II said during a March 1994 visit that she would respect whatever decision Bermuda makes about its future.

Bermuda has largely selfgoverning since 1968.