Premier David Saul last night found himself in the firing line over the Tim Smith saga -- from an-ex First Commanding Officer of the Bermuda Regiment.

Colonel Brownlow Tucker, a former MP, took aim at Dr. Saul for not kicking Smith out of the Cabinet.

And the 83-year-old claimed he would remain an "ex-UBP'' member until the ruling party united.

Col. Tucker's remarks drew huge round of applause from some 55 people who packed St. George's Town Hall.

But Dr. Saul strongly defended his decision not to fire Mr. Smith over off-the-cuff remarks picked up by a House of Assembly microphone.

Instead, he painted himself as a Premier who would stick to his Cabinet colleagues through thick and thin.

"I will take this right on the chin,'' he declared of the Tim Smith affair.

It was last month astonished radio listeners heard Mr. Smith calling UBP rebels, including Mr. Trevor Moniz, "wicked'' and a "nasty bunch''.

He also swiped at Mr. Moniz, claiming the Smith's South MP had appealed over an "illegal'' house.

And in the conversation with former Cabinet Minister John Irving Pearman, he said he had not looked at the appeal, adding: "I said I ain't looking at it for now. The naughty b*****. He built it anyway. Couldn't care less.

They're a law unto themselves.'' Last night, Dr. Saul said he did not believe Mr. Smith had shown malice or bias by the remarks.

"I did not believe it was an offence that warranted dismissal.'' He went on: "I have observed too often where Ministers have made a mistake, that a Premier has left them hanging out to dry in left field ... but that is not David Saul's style.'' The Town Hall meeting was one of a series of "get to know you'' sessions being held by Dr. Saul and Cabinet Ministers.

Sharing the panel with him last night was Transport Minister Wayne Furbert and Minister of Works, Engineering, Parks and Housing Leonard Gibbons.

Among those in the audience were Minister of Youth Development and Recreation Pamela Gordon, Minister of Technology and Information John Barritt, Government Whip Richard Spurling and St. George's South UBP MP Mrs. Grace Bell.

Although good-humoured, the audience last night fired a barrage of complaints and concerns at the panel, including: Joblessness among qualified Bermudians; Illegal workers; The gulf in standards between private and public schools; Lack of Policemen; Too lenient penalties meted out in the courts; Unfair lending practices of financial institutions, such as banks; The age of buses; The "terrible'' state of bathrooms at Fort St. Catherine's; Alleged delay in a landscaping project at Ordnance Island; and The need for a base for St. George's Action Committee.

Many of the speakers, including Mrs. Bell's son, Floyd, called for Government to help Bermuda's youth.

Cried out one speaker: "Government has not done justice to the young people.

"The young are on a crash course to nowhere. There has not been enough time and enough programmes devoted to them.'' Another speaker called for Bermudians to unite to rekindle their community spirit. There was too much emphasis on money, he said.

Dr. Saul agreed, and pledged renewed Government commitment to the youth.

"We need to do something about the young. We cannot afford to have them lost.''