By INDERIA SAUNDERS, Guardian Business Desk

A top financial advisor is pressing for a meeting between government and industry players following a rejection of the $700 billion US. economic bailout plan — a move, he says, leaves The Bahamas in urgent need of mapping out a response to its own worse-case-scenario.

British American's Michael Halkitis believes a 'pow-wow' would not only serve to prepare for any bad times ahead, but would send a reassuring signal to the Bahamian public, many now wondering whether to start securing money underneath their mattresses.

"We need to look at the different variables and probabilities of different events, to say, in case this happens, we can do this," he said. "We need a meeting of finance, Central Bank and banking officials, as a signal to the Bahamian public, to say we are meeting and putting our heads together to sort of map out plans to deal with whatever is going to happen.

"I think if we do it publicly, even if its behind closed doors, it will send a signal that the powers that be are really meeting and strategizing."

The push for this meeting comes on the heels of the Central Bank cautioning Bahamians to cutback on spending and avoid taking on additional debt.

The Bank pointed to the possibility of a reduction in available credit and an increase in borrowing costs, in the event that international financial markets remain unsettled in the near term.

The bank's statement came on the heels of dramatic news that the United States Congress had rejected a $700 billion financial bailout package, intended to prevent what many fear will be a "long and painful" recession with significant consequences for the tourism-dependent Bahamas.

While Halkitis said he did not see local institutions limiting credit any time in the near future, he agreed with the bank's predictions that the situation remained very volatile. As it was now, the advisor said it was unclear what, if any, effect the failed bailout would have on the Bahamian economy.

"But if you see a deepening economic uncertainty in the U.S., we will see it flow through our economy," he added. "The U.S. doing poorly means we will have fewer visitors in the hotels, which means fewer people working and fewer people qualifying for homes and vehicles.

"In terms of other aspects, if credit tightens in the U.S., then potential investors will not have funds for various developments."

These are scenarios that Halkitis believes should be introduced in an industry meeting.