Social Rehabilitation Minister Dale Butler will represent Bermuda at a CARICOM summit in the Bahamas at the weekend which will discuss anti-gang efforts.

Bermuda is an associate member of the Caribbean 15-nation bloc which is now talking about devising a regional security force to battle flare-ups of gang violence.

A wire report this week said a report from the CARICOM HQ said the current security system by individual member states was not sufficient to deal with rising street crime.

Premier Ewart Brown told The Royal Gazette: "This Government is keenly interested in any discussion in the anti-gang effort. Minister Butler will certainly fully engage on this topic at the meeting of CARICOM. "Then, if there is a way for Bermuda to benefit through further involvement, we will do so without hesitation."

The 19th Inter-Sessional Meeting of the heads of Government begins Friday and ends Saturday.

Dr. Brown said it was important that Bermuda continued to play a role in the region.

"We have experiences that, when shared, can assist our neighbours and we likewise learn from them through our discourse.

"This is why Minister Butler will be representing Bermuda at the important Conference of Heads of Government session at the end of the week."