Tourism board Director Delaey Robinson has promised to investigate claims by the US Consul that sexual assaults and the use of date rape drugs are prevalent on the island.

But last night US Consul Jennifer Schools defended the US Government web-site travel advisory saying independent research done by her had shown the claims to be true and they would be repeated when the site was updated this month.

The website message said: “Popular tourist attractions such as museums, beaches, restaurants and hotels, and transportation systems are often areas where criminals operate.

“There have been a number of serious incidents of sexual assault and acquaintance rape. Use of Rohypnol and other date rape drugs have been confirmed by local authorities and reported in the local media.”

Ms Schools said she had made the warning after two women said in 1999 that they had been left unconscious in a parking lot after consuming spiked drinks at a local night club, with one claiming she had been sexually assaulted.

Dr. Basil Wilson was quoted in the Bermuda Sun saying there had been a number of incidents in Bermuda associated with Rohypnol.

Police issued an advisory for women in December 2000 which included a warning about date rape drugs while in April 2001 an e-mail circular did the rounds in Bermuda claiming two women had their drinks spiked in a bar. Ms Schools said there was a four-month stretch in 2000 in which a number of rapes and sexual assaults had occurred. She told The Royal Gazette: “Anything that appears to be an ongoing and very serious matter which might affect US citizens, either tourists or residents, must be reported to the State department.

“When people go on vacation they tend not to think they are still in the real world.”

She said Consuls had a duty to be very careful with the information they provided about a country in order to protect their citizens.

Asked when the stories about Rohypnol would be considered too obsolete to be mentioned on the website she said: “For something like Rohypnol it's particularly difficult. Rape is difficult in the first place, the majority of rapes are not reported, you have to look at the situation. When someone like that makes a statement in the press I keep it in.”

And she said the description of Bermuda was quite mild compared to nations in the Caribbean where US Government website advisories had focused heavily on the crime dangers. She said: “Our responsibility is to warn Americans of specific problems.”

She said she had not had any protests from the Bermuda Government but Tourism Board Chairman Mr. Robinson said he would be investigating the matter and called on Ms Schools to be more specific about her claims.

He said: “There is a tendency in officialdom to protect their own hindquarters by overstating rather than understating dangers.

“They are very trigger-happy when it comes to lawsuits so they are accustomed to protecting themselves.”

Mr. Robinson said he doubted any comparison between Bermuda and a US location of 60,000 would show the island had a similar or better record on sex attacks.

He said: “It's well known that compared to the US this place is as safe as houses.

“It's extraordinary how people can be so sloppy with the truth. I would be interested to check out her sources. If it is not credible I will ask the Premier to ask the Governor to write to the appropriate authorities”

He said he doubted many Bermudians were going on dates with Americans anyway.

Ms. Schools also defended a passage on the US Government website which said complained of road dangers in Bermuda.

The passage reads: “Motor scooters are the greatest road peril, as local operators tend to abuse the speed limit more than other drivers, and will pass on the left and right with no warning.

“Renters should be aware that there are frequent scooter accidents - sometimes fatal or involving very serious injuries - involving visitors.”

Ms Schools said about the passage: “I would like to see anyone deny that.”

She said road deaths were the number one cause of deaths of US citizens overseas and that Consuls had a duty to report about road safety.

Opposition Tourism spokesman David Dodwell said Government should find out what criteria the US Consul were using to label Bermuda.

He said: “I have not heard too much about date rape.”

But he said Government needed to tackle crime when it was a real problem, such as the recent torchings of cars in St. George's.

Mr. Dodwell said how safe a country was had always figured in the top five considerations when tourists selected a country to visit but was now even more important after September 11.

He said: “We have to be clean to keep people coming back.”