Senator David Burch has brushed off calls to resign after earlier calling for Police to take "decisive, aggressive and appropriately violent action" to tackle criminals.

That prompted Shadow Attorney General Mark Pettingill to label his comments "criminal" and to call for him to go.

But yesterday Sen. Burch told The Royal Gazette"The comments are not criminal.

"If he listened to what I said I am not calling for people to break the law at all. I do have some regrets about using the word 'violence'. What I should have said was appropriate levels of 'aggressiveness'.

"But there will be no resignation or backdown on the crackdown that I want to see happening

"I would like them (Police) to kick in some doors and use the intelligence that they have to be more proactive."

Sen. Burch said he will be making the same points, even more forcefully, at a meeting with Police today.

"The vast majority of people say they are fed up and they had enough and they want the Police to Police this country and I bet Mr. Pettingill is getting a whole lot of flak for his comments.

"Sen. Burch said 21 and 22-year-olds were now running amok while law abiding people were running scared.

"I can't even process that. I am an adult, don't talk about a little punk intimidating the whole Country. We have to do something if we want a different result."

His comments followed a mob attack in Hamilton Parish which put three men in hospital. He said the established strength of Police was now at an unprecedented level and he praised reports that Police had stepped up their presence around Court Street yesterday.

"I was unaware they were doing an operation this morning but it is precisely the type of action we would like to see.

"I want Police to be proactive and appropriately aggressive." After hearing of Sen. Burch's regret over his choice of the word 'violence," Mr. Pettingill said: "I'm pleased to hear that. Anyone at times can speak out of turn (but)Istill have concerns about the whole attitude towards this problem.

"Mr. Pettingill called for a "more balanced" approach with increased community engagement coupled with the tactics advocated by Sen. Burch, who is a former Regiment commander.

"I don't disagree with everything Colonel Burch has to say but I don't agree with the way he says things. I don't think you can run a Ministry like you're a Colonel in the Army," he said.

However, the Senator's strong stance won the wholehearted backing yesterday of Progressive Labour Party member for Pembroke South East, Ashfield DeVent.

"We're dealing with people who're not very nice individuals, that's clear, and there's no politically-correct way to deal with these people. We have to be tough in some regards," he said.

Mr. DeVent claimed there are areas of Bermuda, such as St. Monica's Road and Curving Avenue in Pembroke where law-abiding citizens are living in fear of drug dealers.

"There are people who continue to break the law and there doesn't seem to be any pressure on them,"he said. "There are people that have been dealing drugs for years. Everyone knows it's them. Surely the Police must know?"

Yesterday Shadow Public Safety Minister Michael Dunkley called for a review of Police after voicing concern over spiralling crime figures. He said violent crime and crimes of dishonesty had grown steadily for more than two years with no indication the trend was levelling, let alone subsiding.

He said:"We need to stem the tide. We are in the midst of a prolonged surge and need the Police fighting hard and effectively for us."

Mr. Dunkley added: "While we appreciate the frustration behind the Public Safety Minister's outburst this week, it is essential we deal with the situation sensibly. We need cool heads, not hot heads."

There is an urgent need to reassess Bermuda's approach to crime fighting, said Mr. Dunkley.

"The statistics raise questions about whether current strategies and deployments are the right ones. The time for a formal review of the Police Service is long past due.

"The Police Service was last inspected in 2003 by a highly qualified UK Inspector of Constabulary, said Mr. Dunkley.

"The inspections offer highly useful reviews of what is working well, what is not working well, and recommendations flow from them.

"But six years has passed and Bermuda needed a new one now, said Sen. Dunkley.An update on Police accreditation, which was started in 2003 with the application to the Commission on Accreditation of Law Enforcement Agencies, was also needed said Sen. Dunkley.

The accreditation process helps ensure Police are doing things to recognised standards; to improve Police performance in operational, technical and administrative areas. "The accreditation should have been completed in 2007, and so we ask the question: Where are we on accrediting the Police Service?"Bermuda needs tough action on crime now.

"We have every faith in the men and women of the Police Service to do the job, but it is only sensible to take measures that can help them do their job more effectively."