e's a man of few words, but when Kenneth (Pop) Simmons does speak, he is quick to come up with ideas.

Government should look into establishing a rent-to-buy scheme to address the affordable housing quandary, he believes.

Another solution to the housing problem? Sell off "old, dilapidated houses" at a reasonable price to handymen so they can bring them back to shape.

Mr. Simmons, 45, somewhat reluctantly agreed to speak to on his House of Assembly aspirations, preferring to defer to the Progressive Labour Party's (PLP) public relations machinery.

A relatively new member of the PLP, he has lived in the Hog Bay, Somerset area (District 33) all his life and works as an air-conditioning and refrigeration technician at the King Edward VII Memorial Hospital.

"I've always been a community person," he said when asked why he had decided to enter public life. "I feel it's about time that I get out there and carry the message for the people ? that there are people out there who are willing to go to bat for them."

A good representative is "someone who would think on the grassroots level, understand the day to day pressures or issues of the ordinary man".

His work brings him into contact with people from all walks of life, he noted. "And I treat everybody the same regardless of who they are."

Mr. Simmons has been deeply involved in helping to motivate young people. He co-founded Ambitious Associates, a motivational organisation which sponsored awards banquets and was one of the first to give national recognition to former Premier Jennifer Smith. "We were a group of young men that completed school in the mid 1970s, at Sandys," he explained.

"And what we did was honour people in the community who were doing good for the well-being of the community."

Ms Smith received her award "long before she became an MP", he noted. "What we were really doing was targeting young black men and we used to bring in motivational speakers to go into the schools and hold workshops with them."

The group's activities stalled with the untimely death of cofounder Lance Brown. "In fact this is one of the reasons why I'm in ? to carry out his dreams as well. All of us were leaders in our own ways. We have always been the young men in the community that everyone looked up to and respected ? simply because we were all sportsmen, academically inclined as well as fun to be around."

Probably most widely known as a member of the singing quartet U-Fonics, Mr. Simmons is the vice chairman of the PLP's district 34 branch organisation, was born and bred in the Hog Bay, Somerset area where he has lived all his life, and was well known as a cricket player in his youth.

He was educated at Southampton Glebe, Saltus, Sandys Secondary and Bermuda College, and is a member of the West End Primary Parent Teacher Association. He is married with one daughter and two step daughters between the ages of ten and 17. Like other party supporters, Mr. Simmons says that he has been encouraged by the PLP's democracy.

Participation in internal politics is "definitely" encouraged, he said, and the party is better off for it. "As you can see with the nine (candidates) for 36 we are definitely striving for excellence and we have an abundance of talent. There's definitely encouragement, especially with the single seat constituencies. And you can now challenge and comment."