overlords could be used to fight crime and rehabilitate the victims of drugs, Labour and Home Affairs Minister Quinton Edness revealed last night.

And he called for special units to be set up in the Police Service and the Attorney General's office to trace the paper trails from sophisticated crimes -- also funded by criminals' profits.

Mr. Edness said: "This is something I will have to discuss with the Minister of Finance -- but there is a nice poetic justice in it.

"I'd like to see the proceeds of crime used to help Police and Customs to develop more weapons in the fight against crime.

"And I'd like to see some of the assets used in programmes for rehabilitation and for education.'' Mr. Edness was speaking after MPs backed tough new laws to give Island authorities the teeth to bite into the assets of drug barons and crime overlords.

He said: "It's a first-class Act and I'm very pleased it has been passed. It will provide a very effective weapon in dealing with the heart of this problem -- the obscene profits.

"It will prevent reinvestment for future criminal activity and seize things someone may want for the purpose of carrying on future criminal activity.'' Crooks who make massive profits can expect their ill-gotten gains going back up to six years to be seized -- on top of heavy jail terms.

But Shadow Home Affairs Minister Alex Scott -- while welcoming a new weapon in the war against drugs -- still had reservations.

And he predicted the Act could be so complicated to put into practice that the courts will fight shy of using it.

He said: "We agree that no-one should take comfort that they can go into the trafficking of drugs and secrete their ill-gotten gains in an investment of some sort or property.'' But he added: "However -- and it's the only however -- we were concerned for the totally innocent individual who gets caught up in the nefarious trading and profiting in drugs.

"There is a very real risk that someone like a grandmother raising a grandson -- who may in time contribute to the household and at some point offer a down payment on a house as a reward for looking after him -- might find herself liable as far as the Proceeds of Crime Act goes.'' Mr. Scott added that a clause in the Act allowing Police to raid lawyers' offices in pursuit of an incriminating paper trail "undermined some of the fundamental legal principles, not for those who act illegally, but our democracy and justice system''.

Debate: Page 4 Crime bill passed And he said: "Another concern -- and I hope to be proved wrong -- is that because of the complexity of the bill it may become more complicated in practice than in theory and we may see, unfortunately, this Act rarely used.

But I hope it accomplishes what it is supposed to do.'' But Mr. Edness said current law allowed legal and other offices to be raided.

He stressed that lawyers still retained the right to remain silent on privileged conversations with clients.

He added that -- although the courts could seize assets from third parties -- there were checks and balances enforced by the courts.

He said that even if a grandmother was to have property seized she would not be criminally liable and added that the courts would have discretion not to grab assets.

Mr. Edness added: "One of the things driving this criminal activity is the ability to hide the proceeds through moving them through third parties.

"And very often third parties are peripherally involved and enjoying the benefits -- the law should reach them too.''