The Government was warned not to jeopardise the public's perception of justice with impending top legal appointments.

Opposition Senator Maxwell Burgess raised concerns over the selection of a new politically-appointed Attorney General and a Director of Public Prosecutions.

He said there should be a clear separation between the criminal prosecutions and the new AG -- so the public would keep their confidence in the justice system.

And he questioned whether the new AG, who would have to be a current member of the House of Assembly or Senate, would keep their political salary as well as the AG pay.

If so, the selected person would get an AG's salary of $124,281, with a Senator's allowance of $20,978 or an MPs wage of $31,466.

Government Senator Michael Scott said the salary would be on a par with the current AG's allocation, but said he was not in a position to say whether the MP or Senator's salary would be part of the package.

It is believed the two candidates for the AG's position are Environment Minister Arthur Hodgson and Legislative Affairs Minister Lois Browne-Evans.

Khamisi Tokunbo, principal Crown counsel in the civil law section of the AG's Chambers, has been tipped for the DPP post, a position which requires political neutrality and objectivity.

Sen. Burgess said the present system had clear defining lines that had built up trust with the public.

"Prosecutions and the AG must have a clear separation that must be crystal clear, never to be crossed,'' said Sen. Burgess.

"The one thing we have been respected for is knowing where the lines are and not crossing them. I want to be assured that the new Government doesn't muddy the waters, leaving people to have a different perception of us.'' He said he was worried that the PLP was in a hurry to satisfy a promise made to somebody over the post and stressed that they needed to get it right.

"We have matters before us in the court and I just don't know how they would have gone if the lines weren't clear enough for people to understand,'' he added.

Sen. Scott said it was because of the present situation that they wanted to separate the position, so the AG could advise the Government on matters of law and the DPP could handle criminal prosecutions.

He said it was a straightforward way of dealing with the issue. The AG will also be a member of the Cabinet.

Members of the Senate approved The Director of Public Prosecutions (Consequential Amendments) Act 1999.

Sen. Burgess also called for stiffer penalties to be imposed on drug smugglers who supply narcotics to prison inmates.

Speaking during the Home Affairs and public safety budget debate in the Senate yesterday, the former UBP Minister said that the prison service did a sterling job in dealing with "hard core criminals''.

But he added that more must be done to allow prisoners to rehabilitate in a drug-free environment.

"We must ensure that the gravity of the law comes down on anyone who thinks they will be able to supply prisoners with drugs,'' he said.

"That's unacceptable and we must look at measures by which those who practice that are brought to justice severely.

"One of the things we pray for is that, if a drug addict is in prison he's removed from drugs and to the extent that people say that they are committed to making sure that that prisoner gets his or her drugs I think they should be dealt with severely -- they get no sympathy with me.'' The former Home Affairs and Public Safety Minister went on to praise his successor, Paula Cox, on reassuring businesses that work permits would not automatically dry up under the new administration.

But he had some harsh words over the Bermudianisation of the Police Service, claiming that what was needed currently was experienced officers -- and that meant going overseas.

And he indicated that a decline in the number of work permits being issued was not necessarily a sign that Bermudians were taking up positions in companies -- it could also mean that those companies were moving their operations to another jurisdiction.

"Let me just say this,'' he said.

"I wish to commend the new Minister on -- from the indicators I have received from the private sector and the Minister's own public utterances -- that all is well in ensuring that necessary work permits to keep the economy going and Bermudians in employment are being issued,'' he said.

"She can rest assured that she has the unwavering support of both myself and the Opposition when it comes to making sure that the execution of work permits continues to take place.'' Sen. Burgess argued that local frustration over work permits would dissipate if Bermudians could see how thorough the process of issuing the document is.

And he also said that Bermudian nationals needed to be given the opportunity to re-tool and retrain in order to stand a better chance of climbing the corporate ladder.

But he insisted that Government must alter its policy on Police recruitment.

"The Bermudian Government is making a mistake if it is just going to hire more inexperienced Bermudians,'' he said.

"I believe the sensible approach is to hire the experts on a fixed contract with a view to identifying intermediate officers.''