Opposition Leader Dr. Grant Gibbons is challenging the Premier to prove her claim that funding for a Police station in St. George's had been made in last year's Budget.

Jennifer Smith made the claim on Wednesday after pledging to keep a station in crime-hit St. George's after public concern over the moving of operations to Southside in St. David's.

Dr. Gibbons said he had been through both the 200002 Budget figures and Budget speech and the only reference to the St. George's Police station was in Finance Minister Eugene Cox's speech.

Mr. Cox said: "$1 million will be invested to outfit the St. George's Police station in a new location in Southside."

Last night Dr. Gibbons accused the Premier of being misleading and called on her to elaborate.

He said: "If it's in the Budget it must be extremely well hidden."

Works and Engineering Minister Alex Scott said the money had been part of the capital works money in the Works and Engineering budget and he said work had already been done repairing the roof.

He said the revamped Police station would only be small. Dr. Gibbons said the Premier needed to clarify the rest of her remarks because it was unclear what role the revamped St. George's Police Station would play.

He said: "Will it be a fully operating Police Station or simply be a substation? Will it close while they are renovating it?"

For the second day running the Premier failed to respond to questions from The Royal Gazette asking whether the bulk of the 46-strong force currently located in St. George's would stay there or be moved to Southside.

A Government spokeswoman said she thought Ms Smith would respond "on Friday afternoon at the earliest".

Dr. Gibbons said the confusion was causing frustration among the public.

. They were worried about recent torchings of cars and the attempted burning of a Police vehicle.

More than 1,000 people have signed a petition to retain the St. George's Police Station.

Dr. Gibbons said: "There is concern about the adequacy of policing in St. George's. Government must come clean."

Dr. Gibbons said the Premier's statement on Wednesday contradicted those by Government Senate Leader Lt. Col. David Burch and Home Affairs Minister Terry Lister.

Sen. Burch told the Senate in March that it didn't make sense to have two East end Police Stations while Mr. Lister told The Royal Gazette earlier this month that Government was pushing ahead with its plan to close the Old Town Police Station and move to St. David's.

Dr. Gibbons said: "Mr. Lister and Sen. Burch must be very embarrassed as they said something different.

"It looks like a 180 degree turn."

It was not the first time that the Premier had been forced to do a U-turn in her own back yard, said Dr. Gibbons, who recalled she had been forced to reverse a decision to cut one of the P1 classes at the St. George's Preparatory School in 2000 after public pressure. The Premier's claim that the Cabinet had decided to retain a Police Station in St. George's before the 2001/02 Budget contrasted with a letter dated June 18, 2001 written by Police Commissioner Jonathan Smith to Sen. Kim Swan.

The letter discussed a number of options for policing in the East end including having no Old Town Police Station but running everything out of Southside.