January, its chairman Labour Minister the Hon. J. Irving Pearman disclosed.

Premier the Hon. Sir John Swan privately set up the Caucus committee over the last two weeks, it was learned.

He named Human Affairs Minister the Hon. Jerome Dill and backbenchers Mr. John Barritt, the Hon. Mrs. Ann Cartwright DeCouto and the Hon. Harry Soares to it.

They are tasked with tackling heightened crime in the Island which came to a head with the Spinning Wheel nightclub double shooting in October.

"It will make recommendations on how Government can be more effective in dealing with crime,'' Mr. Pearman said.

Mr. Pearman said he had been meeting "frequently'' with Governor Lord Waddington, the deputy Governor and Police officials to "garnish background information so when we sit down we know where we are''.

Mr. Pearman was reluctant to discuss the committee until it had something concrete to present to the public.

He said the Opposition's call for a Royal Commission on crime had no bearing on the appointment of the committee.

The Premier, also reluctant to discuss the committee until it got down to business, said it was appointed to garner some new thought on the issue, which remained in the forefront of Government's concerns.

News of the committee follows Social Services Minister the Hon. Quinton Edness' recent disclosure that Government was considering another batch of tough anti-crime laws.

Sir John said it was "premature'' to discuss the ideas.

Mr. Edness, also tight-lipped on the initiatives, had revealed they would target the supply of drugs, which had caused a "massive'' amount of ills in Bermuda.

ANOTHER DEFEAT FOR PRESCOTT PLN Another defeat for Prescott A Paget resident is chalking up another development refusal with resignation, The Royal Gazette was told.

Mr. Nigel Prescott's latest proposal is to enclose part of the courtyard of "Jonathan's Landing'', under a stone "Bermuda roof'', he said. The courtyard had been enclosed before, under an asbestos roof, but he took it down some time ago to clean out the area.

The Development Applications Board, in a meeting on December 7, ruled that: "The maximum permitted site coverage of 20 percent has already been exceeded at the application site, and therefore, no additional site coverage may be permitted.'' Mr. Prescott said he had never received approval from the Board. "This is something they've been doing to me for some 20-odd years.'' He was resolved to appeal to the Environment Minister Senator the Hon. Gerald Simons, saying appeals had brought success in the past.

At the same DAB meeting, a plan to build a silo to hold aggregate on Ducks Puddle Drive in St. George's was approved.

The Board stipulated that the silo should not be taller than 35 feet without express consent from the Board, and that the area should be landscaped and maintained in landscaped condition.