Rolfe Commissiong is no longer Government's race consultant after four years in the job — but he will remain on the public payroll for the next six months.

Premier Paula Cox has tasked the outspoken former PLP election candidate with helping to put in place the Mincy Report recommendations on young black Bermudian males.

Ms Cox's press secretary told The Royal Gazette: "The contract for Mr Commissiong in his prior capacity was terminated at its end. Mr Commissiong has subsequently been retained for a period of six months to assist with the implementation of recommendations from the Mincy Report.

"During this time, Mr Commissiong will also continue to administer the [US stop list] Visa Waiver Assistance programme."

Deputy Opposition leader Trevor Moniz last night questioned whether Mr. Commissiong — whose expertise has been costing taxpayers more than $103,000 a year — was the right person for the job.

"It should be stated publicly precisely what he's doing," said the Shadow Attorney General. "I'm not quite sure what the object of the whole exercise is for Mr. Commissiong. He was already looking at the Mincy Report before we changed leadership. "There are those of us who feel he's not qualified. Mr Commissiong is someone who has a very clear political agenda.

"He is not objective and for the job that he's supposedly being called upon to do you would need: a) objectivity and b) expertise. He has neither."

Mr Commissiong was made consultant to former Premier Ewart Brown in November 2006, when he was charged with running the Bermuda Race Relations Initiative (BRRI) and helping form public policy on Bermudian black males.

He has worked on the Mirrors scheme and on a programme launched earlier this year to help people on the US stop list — especially young black males — obtain visa waivers in order to travel to the States.

He has been involved with the Mincy Report — a $400,000 study released last year on the employment, earnings and educational gaps between young black Bermudian males and their same-age peers — since it was ordered in 2007.

In March this year, Bermuda Democratic Alliance member Dueane Dill claimed Mr Commissiong called him a "house nigger" — an allegation the consultant denied. Two months later, PLP MP Terry Lister called for the race consultant to be fired after he made insulting remarks about Government backbencher Ashfield DeVent, whose electoral constituency he is said to have set his sights on.

The same month, a Facebook group demanding he be sacked was launched, attracting almost 200 members.

But former PLP Senator Calvin Smith has said Dr Brown "could not have selected a better person" to run the BRRI, a series of discussions on race held during 2007.

And yesterday historian and race activist Dr Eva Hodgson said Mr Commissiong had done what the former Premier appointed him to do.

"Having taken a lot of flak all my life because I have talked racism and race relations, I don't necessarily attach too much importance to the fact that he has taken a lot of flak," she said. "Bermudians — black and white — dislike talking about race relations."

Mr Commissiong was reported in February this year to be Government's top-earning local consultant, getting paid $8,600 a month. This newspaper visited him at his office in Global House yesterday but he refused to comment on his latest role.

He later sent an e-mail asking why The Royal Gazette was "so interested" in the length of his contract but declining to say anything further.

Ms Cox's press secretary did not respond to questions about his current salary or when his contract will run out.