Canadian Jean-Jacques Lemay was yesterday appointed as Bermuda's new Deputy Police Commissioner -- but on secondment from the Mounties.

Chf. Supt. Lemay is due to take up his new post early in the New Year and will work on the Island for 18 months.

The posting was announced yesterday and Police Commissioner Colin Coxall said: "I am pleased with the appointment.

"I anticipate that Mr. Lemay will be well placed to make a major contribution towards implementing the Service Strategy.'' Chf. Supt. Lemay will replace former Deputy Commissioner Michael Mylod who resigned earlier this year for "personal reasons'' 18 months into his two-year contract.

Both Mr. Mylod and Mr. Coxall left their previous jobs to take over at the helm of the Bermuda Police Service.

However Chf. Supt. Lemay will not be resigning his post in the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and will be on secondment to Bermuda for 18 months.

Shadow Home Affairs Minister Alex Scott said: "It will take him 18 months just to get to know where Billy Goat Hill is in Warwick.'' Bermuda needed to appreciate that it had qualified resources here it could call upon which were familiar with Bermuda.

Until it did that, he continued, Bermuda would only prolong the problem of not having Bermudians atop the Police Service instead of solving it.

Mr. Scott said the general feeling voiced to him by some Police officers was that Chf. Supt. Lemay needed to know his way around and they would have to brief him like they did Mr. Mylod and Mr. Coxall.

New Deputy Commissioner the crime spots were and that would not happen overnight.

"He can't hit the deck running,'' said Mr. Scott.

The appointment was made by the Governor Lord Waddington and last night the Deputy Governor Peter Willis said the secondment was not an issue.

"The manner by which he comes does not have any relevance and we expect Mr.

Lemay to be at his desk early in the New Year.'' He added: "Bermudianisation is still a major plank of Government policy. It is an important part of Government policy but it is essential to support the implementation of the Police Strategy.'' Mr. Willis said no suitable Bermudian officer was available and that high priority was now being given to ensuring Bermudian officers were being trained " to the full extent of their potential''.

Chf. Supt Lemay joined the RCMP in 1965 at the age of 19 and worked in Montreal and New Brunswick on general policing and commercial crime.

In 1974 he taught law and human relations at the RCMP's Regina Training Academy and in 1977 he was transferred to the Ottawa Commercial Crime Section.

He was promoted to the rank of Inspector in 1984 and was posted to Paris where he worked with Interpol until 1986 when he moved back to Ottawa to take over in Commercial Crime.

By 1991 he had been promoted to the rank of Superintendent and was in charge of training at the RCMP's training academy.

Two years later, as a Chf. Supt. he was chosen by the United Nations Security Council as Commissioner of Civilian Police Monitors for the UN Mission in Haiti.

Chf. Supt. Lemay comes to Bermuda from his present posting as director, officers staffing and personnel at the RCMP National Headquarters, Ottawa.

He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree with combined majors in law and sociology/anthropology. He has the RCMP long service and good conduct medals and has two children.