folk are sleeping in abandoned cars on the edge of Pembroke Dump in a lot known as "car world'', are exaggerated.

"It is more like four or five,'' said the Hon. Quinton Edness.

Mr. Edness has also come out in defence of the Salvation Army's night shelter on North Street saying it was by no means a "prison''.

He pointed out the Salvation Army ran a rehabilitation programme as well as a shelter, and therefore it could not allow people to bring in alcohol or drugs and come and go whenever they wanted.

"It runs a very strict programme,'' he said. "It's not a hotel -- it doesn't keep dinner open from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m.'' However, he noted, dinner was served to anyone -- even if they did not want to stay the night.

Mr. Edness was responding to comments made by several homeless folk living at "car world'' who had been former patients of St. Brendan's psychiatric hospital.

"Car world'' residents told the The Royal Gazette last week that they did not like the strict rules at the Army's night shelter, having to eat dinner at 5 p.m., be in bed by 11 p.m., and out the door by 9 a.m.

One homeless man, Mr. Carlton Matthews, went as far as to call the shelter a "prison''.

Mr. Matthews was angry that he and other "car world'' residents had been unable to get help from Government. "I wish they'd change the system,'' he said, referring to the shelter's rules. "For three years I've been hanging around here. Government's got to do something about it!'' However, Mr. Edness said he knew a couple of the homeless spoken to and insisted they were not being ignored by Government.

Social Services and the Salvation Army had tried "over and over'' to help them, he said. But many of them had drug or alcohol problems and did not want help.

"All we can do is keep trying,'' he said. He added it was his understanding Ms Betty Simmons stayed at the shelter every night and not mostly in a rusted station wagon as she claimed.

Mr. Edness said Government was, in fact, currently negotiating for a building to turn into a sort of "club'' for the homeless.

His Ministry was keen on the idea so it could keep in touch with the homeless people who refused the help of the Salvation Army shelter.

Mr. Edness said he was also attempting to secure a building to create more housing for homeless people.

But his Ministry needed the funds before the two facilities could become a reality. Once the economy recovered, it would probably get the money, he said.

"We believe a sort of day care facility is the first step to developing a stronger relationship with them and motivating them into a programme,'' he said.

The existence of "car world'' was revealed by St. Brendan's Hospital's Community Service Team (CST) leader Mr. Jeremy Lodge during Clinical Social Work Week. About a dozen homeless people slept at the lot, he said.

The clinical psychologist made the revelation in calling for a "club'' and more housing for a group of about 250 homeless people who did not want to sleep at the Salvation Army's shelter -- a few feet from "car world''.

One third of those people had been treated at St. Brendan's and deserved a decent place to live, he said.

Mr. Lodge said it was a misconception that the people in the group were homeless by choice.