Progressive Labour Party backbencher Wayne Perinchief's claims in the House of Assembly on Friday that security in the Police and in other crime fighting services have been breached are very serious.

They warrant attention being paid to them because Mr. Perinchief is a former senior Policeman who presumably still has good contacts within and without the Service. And the fact that Mr. Perinchief, who had famously poor relations with former British Police Commissioner Colin Coxall, is now calling for overseas officers to lead the fight against criminals speaks volumes.

If Mr. Perinchief does know of instances where strong cases against drug dealers have disappeared from the system, then he has an obligation to report them and to ensure that they are resolved.

And if his concerns about corruption by drug lords of the Police, Customs, Prisons and other services are based in fact, then he has an equal obligation to make sure that those responsible for security are made aware of these concerns — and if they have an equal obligation to act on them.

What Mr. Perinchief is certainly correct in saying is that the financial scale of the drugs trade makes the security services vulnerable to corruption. And he is also correct in saying that the small size of the Island means that personal and family relationships can make it difficult for people to retain their objectivity.

And Mr. Perinchief is also absolutely correct in saying that the current buck passing between the Government and the Governor has to stop; all it does is give the criminals succour to see the authorities bickering when a crisis has erupted.

But having said all of that, that does not make an inquiry now necessary, and it could do more harm than good at a time when all the security services should be fully dedicated to the job at hand. What might well be wise would be for an independent authority similar to the Ombudsman to undertake an audit, to look at cases which have not gone to court or have not been tried to find out why not.

If patterns begin to emerge as a result, then an inquiry might well be justified. It is impossible not to agree with Mr. Perinchief that the leaders of the services should be held accountable.

If they fail to accomplish what they say they will, then they should go. Bermuda needs to recognise that it is in a fight for its very soul. As Mr. Perinchief said: "People are fighting for turf, money and power, they don't care who they hurt or who gets in the middle.

"The drug economy is extremely powerful in the country. It is compromising our judicial system, our Police service, our prison service, our custom service and it will eventually compromise our entire economy."

There is, as yet, no hard evidence in public to back up Mr. Perinchief's allegations. But he is right about the power of the drugs trade.

It needs to be stopped now, because even if Mr. Perinchief's allegations are not true, no one should be in any doubt that one day they could well be — and by then it will be too late.