Opposition said.

Shadow Tourism Minister David Dodwell called upon the Progressive Labour Party to make public the report which recommends a backdated pay, bonus and leave structure for the force.

He was speaking as the Police Association and the Government were due to go to arbitration over the pay deal.

Mr. Dodwell said the PLP had the report and even the media had a copy of the report, so it should be released.

He was speaking as MPs from both sides called for community support for the Police force, where morale is said to have hit rock bottom because of understaffing and protracted pay negotiations.

Earlier, Government backbencher Dale Butler said the numbers that wanted to join the force were an example of the sign of the times.

"We do have a very limited pool. Everybody wants our young people,'' he said.

"It is a glorious age to be a student. There are more opportunities. Every profession in this country is desperate to get qualified Bermudians -- they are all looking for them.'' The Government, he said, were backing the Police and wanted to tackle some of the issues facing crime.

"Most of them (criminals) you can rehabilitate. But there is a hardcore out there who are not interested in doing anything. Their criminal behaviour is destroying the country,'' Mr. Butler added.

"You can't stand by and allow that to happen.'' Mr. Dodwell said no one wanted to see a PLP that was soft on crime, but at present it was unclear whether they could pass muster.

And he said Home Affairs Minister Paula Cox could not address the issues on her own, but needed support from all around her.

The Southampton West MP said there was support amongst officers for a Warwick Police Station and challenged Warwick West MP El James to put the issue on the table.

Mr. James said there were some crime concerns in Warwick, but there was a need for alternative action such as education instead of punitive measures.

On the subject of recruitment, he said there were many brilliant people who may not have done well in school, but were trainable.

"There are people you can raise to standards to get in the Police force,'' he said.

Mr. James also argued that today's Policemen and women needed a number of qualities and that some overseas officers might not meet those standards.

"There's a vast cultural difference and we as Bermudians know how to deal with Bermudians,'' he said.

He added that the policing of the Island was the responsibility of the whole community and everyone should help in the latest Police recruitment campaign.

"We need community involvement and I am appealing for people to identify those individuals who could meet the requirements of the Police Service,'' he said.

Government backbencher and Hamilton West MP Randolph Horton also stressed the need to recruit Bermudians for a stronger Police Service.

And he added that the service had the full backing of Government, which was anything but soft on crime.

"Just to give you an example, in the last Budget we had a 6.8 percent rise in the amount of money for the head that handles that department,'' Mr. Horton said.

"The previous Government cut staff by ten percent. We feel we need to provide as much support as possible to get more of our young Bermudians into the Service.

Mr. Horton touched on a theme discussed by many -- that if the Service was to be Bermudianised, there had to be visible opportunities for aspiring officers to climb to the very top.

Opposition MP for Smith's North, Cole Simons , listed a stack of initiatives which he believed could alleviate some of the problems the Service is currently facing.

He suggested that retired officers could be drafted back in to bolster staffing levels, a hotline could be set up to help abused children, and decentralising command.

He also argued that Bermuda Regiment recruits could be given the option of serving as Policemen.

And another way of attracting new recruits would be to offer free tuition fees to students willing to join up.

Government backbench and St. George's South MP Larry Lowe began his presentation by congratulating Home Affairs and Public Safety Minister Paula Cox.

"I am glad that the Minister has come to the Ministry for a time such as this,'' he said. "It's a very unsettling time and we need a Minister who is knowledgeable, who is bright.'' But Shadow Environment Minister and Pembroke West MP Gary Pitman went on the offensive, blaming this week's Police sick-out on poor morale.

"It is evident that the Police haven't been getting Government support,'' he said.

Mr. Pitman blamed poor morale on staff shortages and argued that the recruitment of former officers should start immediately.

"The only way this is going to be improved is by increasing Police staff,'' he said.

PLP veteran and Southampton East MP Reginald Burrows said the Island's growing crime rate was related to social problems.

And he also recalled the days of his youth when it seemed that there was a parish constable on every street corner who was loved and respected by the rest of the community.

"The parish constables have to know the people in their community and the people in the community have to know the parish constables -- this has been lacking for a long time,'' he said.

Shadow Legislative Affairs Minister and UBP MP for Devonshire South John Barritt argued that the debate was premature because Government had not come up with any fresh initiatives.

And with talk of the friendly bobby on the beat echoing around the chamber, he brought a fresh dose of harsh reality to proceedings.

"When people dial 911, they're not looking for a counsellor,'' he said.

"They're looking for some action.''.

"It's all very nice to have Police officers who are your pals, but it's naive to think that's the entire way to go.'' Attorney General Lois Browne Evans argued that the public were anti-Police because of the organisation's reputation as being a "mercenary, military service''.

"There was a time when they came from all the war zones of the British Empire,'' she said.

"And that's what people were rebelling against.'' Opposition MPs claimed that the reason there was no action on bringing in overseas Police officers was that the Government ranks were divided on the issue.

UBP MPs Allan Marshall and Grant Gibbons claimed the lack of substance in the PLP's stance towards the Police showed there was a split amongst MPs about hiring foreign officers.

The Shadow Finance Minister said the motion before the House was full of management speak but contained nothing about the real issues that concerned people.

"People are worried about crime and safety, they want concrete action. When we read this stuff, we know there is not much behind it,'' he said.

"The reason there is no concrete action, is because the Government is divided.

"If they can't find Bermudians they will need to go overseas -- we don't hear that. The Government needs to get off its backside to bring people in.'' And Allan Marshall said morale was so low and manpower was poor, that they should fix the problem now.

"They are divided in their ranks over bringing in expats,'' he said. "There is a void between recruits and getting them into operational service. They need to bring in overseas officers to bolster the ranks to ensure the streets are safe.'' Environment Minister Arthur Hodgson said the problem was connected to the over developed economy, which resulted in foreign workers putting strain on the Island's resources and pressure on the Police.

"At least Bermudians must know that they have first pick and it is because we are embarking on that course of action that will encourage law abiding citizenship,'' he said.

He added that the UBP's policy of bringing extra foreign Police officers brought provocation to people on the streets.

Earlier, Opposition MP Patricia Gordon-Pamplin said officers needed to know they were respected and rewarded for their efforts.

She added that Bermudian officers didn't want overseas officers and believed there were enough locals to fill the void.

Paget East MP Kim Young called for better policing in the community, adding that many people were feeling vulnerable in their own homes.

A statement by the Premier on crime and drugs was not backed up by action, she said.

"The PLP say they have been thinking about these things for 30 years, it shouldn't take too long if they have been thinking for that long,'' she said.

She queried whether the Police and school liaison programme was going to be cut.

Health Minister Nelson Bascome said perhaps the Bermuda Regiment could take on some community policing roles.

And to get some young people off the streets would require some re-training and attitude adjustment, he said, making people aware of time keeping and other skills.

UBP MP Trevor Moniz slammed the Government for their rhetoric, saying many of the speeches disappointed officers who were expecting support from the Government but got trips down memory lane.

"We need more officers on the streets, we need to be more responsive. The thin blue line is non-existent in some places.

"That's what the public want. They don't want trips down memory lane.'' Shadow Transport Minister Erwin Adderley said things had got worse since the PLP had taken power and asked when he could tell his Pembroke West constituents when their community officers would be back in the area.

"I am not able to go back to my community and tell them when their problems will be re-addressed.'' Opposition Leader Pamela Gordon called upon the Government to get the new Hamilton CCTV system up and running, which would then aid policing and free up officers for other roles.

And she slammed the Government for not supplying the Opposition with copies of the policing documenting there were discussing.

There were angry exchanges between Eugene Cox and his Shadow Grant Gibbons over statements on the level of crime.

Mr. Cox claimed the UBP were saying that there was no crime until after the November election, adding that they "should be ashamed of themselves''.

Mr. Gibbons made a point of order, saying the Minister was "way out of line''.

Paget West MP Tim Smith said: "Everybody in the community has one simple question. What are you going to do?'' Tourism Minister David Allen finished off the debate by claiming the Opposition had failed the Police Service for 35 years.

But he was pulled up by Opposition leader Pamela Gordon when he accused the former government of running down the Parish Constable programme.

"The members is misleading the House and is irresponsible because he recognises that it's completely false,'' she said.

Speaker of the House Stanley Lowe agreed.

"I don't think you are being quite correct when you say they got rid of the programme,'' he told his PLP colleague.

But Mr. Lowe did side with the Minister when Mr. Allen explained that the former government had allowed Parish Constable positions to become "moribund and unfilled''.

And he also blamed the Opposition for looking for "the easy way out'' in looking to bolster the Police ranks with officers from overseas.

"This Government is not going to take the easy way out because it believes in Bermudians,'' he said.

And he concluded his remarks by goading the Opposition benches about this week's Police sick out.

"When we talk about the blue flu the real blue flu was the UBP's blue flu -- that's your colour isn't it? "Well this Government is going to give a green cure.

Following the debate Finance Minister Eugene Cox, in the absence of Premier Jennifer Smith, adjourned the House until next Friday.