It's a tough job, but someone has to do it

IN THE morning, he checks the welfare of the turtles on the beach. The afternoon sees him riding through the palm trees on his bike to greet the tourists. In the evening, perhaps, he'll go in for a spot of pre-emptive troubleshooting in the local bar - or he relaxes in the beach house he rents from an absent millionaire.

A Metropolitan Policeman's lot, it seems, can be quite a happy one. After eight years on the beat in north London, Neil Williams has been posted to the Caribbean, the only officer on the tiny British island of Little Cayman.

Here the burglars never burgle; nobody seems intent on any felonious little plan. The sea temperature is usually in the mid-20s Centigrade and the sun shines most of the time.

And Pc Williams doesn't even pay any income tax.

It all began one rainy London day when his station officer in Whetstone pointed out an advertisement: "Constables needed for secondment to the Royal Cayman Islands Police.

Only single men under 30 with no children need apply." Pc Williams, now 32, confesses: "I'd never even heard of the Cayman Islands. From 400 applicants, 13 succeeded.

"Within a few weeks I was stationed on Grand Cayman.

Back home I was in the front line of big-city policing, chasing joy-riders, deployed in riots and dealing with drug offenders. Now I'm on a piece of sunkissed land where the pace of life is slow.

I'm working in a community of wealthy, relaxed people on a paradise island with none of the social problems of the UK."

A day on the front line in Little Cayman involves that 7am start helping the local wildlife monitor track nesting turtles. At 10am, Pc Williams is on his mountain bike tour of the island, meeting the 60- strong community and dealing with any queries. Midday until 2pm is devoted to admin.

At 2.30pm, it's time for another tan-enhancing bike ride to meet the eight-seater plane bringing tourists from Grand Cayman. More community patrols follow and at 6pm it's time to head home or to the bar. "I have official hours, though realistically I'm on duty 24 hours a day, seven days a week," he says. "As the only officer, I have to accept that I'm never really off duty."

So, while patrolling the mean streets of Little Cayman how many arrests has he made?

None. The worst incident was when a local decided to trash one of the island's three bars. Pc Williams had him banned.

"There's been no trouble since.

On an island with only three bars, to be barred from one is possibly the severest punishment there is."

The officer's rugby prowess has led to an international rugby cap with the Cayman Islands national side, and his police advanced driving skills resulted in him being offered the chance to drive Prince Andrew during his recent visit. Then there is tax-free status.

"Take-home pay and benefits are almost equal to that of a chief inspector back home. With such a small island and so little to do, I'm saving."

Yet Pc Williams looks forward to returning to Britain in a year's time. "I miss the camaraderie, the challenge of big city policing and the support infrastructures," he says as he reclines in a hammock.

"Through my experiences here, I'll have a lot to offer. As an Englishman in the Caymans you are in an ethnic minority.

I've experienced harassment and prejudice. I think that will help me understand the problems of our ethnic minority citizens in London, and maybe I can help in a small way to change attitudes on both sides of the fence."

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