Senator David Burch hosted a 90-minute long press conference listing the achievements of seven departments in his Ministry over the course of the 34 months he's spent in the job.

But Sen. Burch, the Minister of Labour, Home Affairs and Housing, refused to comment on speculation that he may retire after Thursday's Progressive Labour Party leadership election.

He repeatedly mentioned that the election marks the end of his current appointment in the position — as whoever wins the party leadership and thus the Premiership will appoint new members to the Upper House. There has been speculation in recent months that he may retire. However, asked if he would yesterday, he replied: "I do not have a crystal ball so I concentrate on the now."

He surrounded himself with the heads of each of the seven departments under his Ministry as he gave an overview of the achievements of each.

He said the Bermuda Police Service had recruited a number of experienced investigative officers from the UK, including Assistant Commissioner David Mirfield to focus on tackling gangs. A Gang Task Force has also been formed, with representatives from the Police plus the Departments of Immigration, Child and Family Services, Court Services, Public Prosecutions, Customs, Education and Corrections.

Sen. Burch revealed the Governor plans to invite Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary — the body that inspects UK Police forces — to inspect the Bermuda Police Service, as requested by the Commissioner, Michael DeSilva.

The Minister expressed fears earlier this year that firefighters might have to be recruited from abroad for the first time in history as not enough Bermudians were passing the entrance tests for the Bermuda Fire Service. However, he said a recruitment drive garnered more than 200 applications and "I'm extremely optimistic that we will not have to look overseas to fill any post".

The Minister also revealed that Regiment Commander Brian Gonsalves and the Commissioner of Police are planning for a number of Regiment Police officers to assist the Bermuda Police Service on a temporary basis as Special Constables.

"This is being done to minimise the need to hire temporary overseas Police officers," he explained. "The outline plan is for them to receive specialised training leading to designation as Special Constables. I can confirm that both His Excellency the Governor and Government are supportive of this plan and we expect this 'work in progress' to be brought to fruition in due course.

"The benefits to both organisations and the country are self-evident."

Turning to Corrections, he said a new "Pin Phone System" was implemented last week to allow prisoners to make calls to those on an approved call list after family members have purchased credit for their accounts. "The introduction of this system should see a reduction in the number of unauthorised cell phones within Corrections facilities," he said. Two additional psychologists are due to begin work alongside the existing three next month, to assist programmes targeting drug, sex and violence.

He said the Department of Labour and Training has developed a monthly training schedule with courses in a number of disciplines, such as interview skills, resume writing, job search, how to keep your job, networking, accounting, and money management. They are offered to clients, the general public and outside agencies free of charge.

Sen. Burch also praised the Bermuda Housing Corporation for achieving its sixth consecutive clean audit last week, leaving the woes of the Bermuda Housing Corporation fraud scandal at the beginning of the decade behind.