his House of Assembly seat, quashing rumours that he was about to retire.

Several younger members of the UBP have made it known they want some of the older backbenchers to stand down and make way for new blood. But Mr. DeCouto, with 20 years in the House, has now made it clear he will not yield.

He currently serves as Deputy Speaker and chairs several House of Assembly committees, including the Committee on the Office of the Auditor, the House and Grounds Committee and the Joint Select Committee on Private Bills.

"I am definitely planning to run in the general election,'' Mr. DeCouto said this week. " ...I have been encouraged by many of my constituents to do so.'' Mr. DeCouto first won his seat in Smith's North in 1972, running first with Mr. Vail Zuill, then the Hon. Ernest Vesey, and most recently with Community Affairs Minister the Hon. Leonard Gibbons.

Smith's North is generally regarded as a safe United Bermuda Party seat, but Mr. Vesey placed a close third when he ran as a National Liberal Party candidate in 1989.

Mr. Ernest DeCouto.