Graeme Outerbridge yesterday confirmed that he will be contesting the election as a candidate for the National Liberal Party after all.

He will be running in Sandys South Central, or constituency 34, he said yesterday.

"I'm running in 34 and I'm going to finish off my political career where I started and in what I believe in - as a candidate for the National Liberal Party (NLP)."

Mr. Outerbridge made the announcement a week after he said it was unlikely that the NLP would be running any candidates in the July 24 General Election and that he was considering running as an Independent.

He criticised the ruling party's record on the environment and repeated an earlier statement that the Opposition deserved another chance at governing the country.

But he noted that if he does get into the House of Assembly, he could become the power broker. Mr. Outerbridge, who serves as the NLP's secretary general, has contested the Smith's South seat for most of his political career. He has never been successful and says that if the voters don't elect him this time around he will quit the political fray for good.

"That's where I grew up," he said when asked why he had chosen a Somerset constituency. "I want to run in a place where I'm from and where I know people - besides it's time the three kings (the Listers) got challenged."

He said the third party had impacted the political scene positively despite never having made any major inroads into the House of Assembly.

"Central to the full page ad for the UBP recently were two ideas from the NLP that they now embrace - namely the absentee ballot and the Freedom of Information Act," he said by way of example. "There are many other examples on both sides of the House. While our presence has been ghostly, our spirit has been strong.

"As I've said earlier the NLP is irrelevant in terms of becoming the government, because at the moment we are only running one candidate. However at 17 to 18 (candidates) it becomes very relevant."

He said he and his party were under no illusions about "the challenge ahead" but he felt it important to keep the "political torch alive, even if I'm just holding the torch to pass it on".

"After the next election I may be forced to pass that torch on but the torch is there for the Bermudian voters to either extinguish or add firewood to it."

Lawyer Ed Bailey, for the United Bermuda Party (UBP) and senior ruling party parliamentarian Walter Lister, are expected to be his opponents in the district.

Mr. Outerbridge said the major issues for Somerset relate to "strengthening community".

That includes strengthening Somerset Cricket Club and "more outreach to the young people that are causing problems in the community, turning the wild wild west into the beautiful west," he said. "And probably at the heart of what I would like to achieve, if I'm elected, is making Daniel's Head into a public park again, but a true community park where people do take pride in the environment."

The NLP has long advocated environmental protection as a key plank of their platform.

Daniel's Head had been developed as an eco-tourism resort after the Canadian bases closed, but the project failed.

Mr. Outerbridge said now that a hotel project has proven not to be viable, it was important to ensure that the area is kept in pristine condition.

"We have a very, very strong environmental base and the other thing I am very concerned about is the enhanced improvement of the railway right of way." Motorists and cyclists are using the Railway trail from Sandys to Somerset Bridge people as a regular thoroughfare, he said.

"It's caused real problems for walkers, joggers and pedestrians. The present Environment Minister has done nothing about it, among many other things he has not done, including allowing the Market place to put cars on top of their roofs at Modern Mart, yet they tell the bank their signs are too large."

Mr. Outerbridge also criticised Tourism Minister Renee Webb, calling her "Bermuda's version of Baghdad Bob" for insisting that the American television program "20/20" had decided not to air a segment on the department's use of stock photographs of Hawaii for its most recent ad campaign. "The Minister of Tourism was totally wrong about the ABC piece not running - the truth was it was pre-empted.

"But to me the Ministry of Tourism has proven to be Bermuda's version of Baghdad Bob."

He said that there may be others willing to run under the NLP banner but so far he was the only one.

His candidacy will be confirmed at an executive meeting on Tuesday.

On his chances of victory Mr. Outerbridge said: "I always run to win. I haven't won with votes but I've always championed the causes and the issues that my party has believed in."