Six years after controversially being turned down as headmaster of a school, Warren Jones has been appointed the first Assistant Cabinet Secretary responsible for the Central Policy Unit.

Premier Jennifer Smith made the announcement during yesterday's special meeting of Government Ministers and senior civil servants.

Mr. Jones will shadow UK Cabinet officer Darren Welch, who is on secondment to the Island to get the new CPU operating.

The Central Policy Unit gathers information from all ministries and departments to improve the decision making process for Cabinet, improving strategic planning and management.

Premier Smith said the CPU will "ensure that any idea or initiative receives full scrutiny and input from all the stake holders (within Government)''.

"We recognise that some issues will require the gathering of information from a wide variety of sources,'' she added. "Difficult decisions will need to be made to bring about reform and these will not necessarily always be the popular decision.

"However the Central Policy Unit will in a sober, deliberate, and structured manner provide the framework to allow for the best such long-term decisions to be made,'' Premier Smith concluded.

A Government spokesperson said Mr. Jones appointment "is a sign of the Civil Service's ability to attract strong Bermudian talent''.

Mr. Jones holds a bachelors degree in Music Education and a masters degree in Education Administration and has taken courses in Human Resource Management and the Art of Negotiation.

The former teacher took out a law suit against the Minister of Education and PSC in about 1995 after he was turned down for the post of principal at Northlands Secondary School after filling the post for three years in an acting capacity.

After leaving education -- having taught at Warwick Academy, Berkeley Institute and at Northlands -- Mr. Jones worked in administration at the Bermuda Telephone Company, rising to his current position of Assistant Vice-President, Outside Plant.

Of the start up of the CPU, Mr. Welch said it was "going extremely well'' and said Cabinet had shown "great foresight'' to establish the policy unit.

He explained that while the UK, European Union and the US governments had organised central policy units, Bermuda was leading the way for the rest of the world.

"What Mr. Jones and I will be doing is trying to coordinate policy better for Cabinet and we're going to be running projects to determine long term strategic policies for Government.'' Warren Jones GOVERNMENT GVT