Simons was a candidate for the New Democratic Party in the 2004 federal election, running in the riding of West Vancouver–Sunshine Coast. He also negotiated funding for innovative preventative health and social services.
In this role he oversaw health, child welfare, alcohol and drugs, financial assistance and justice programs. He served as the executive director of health and social development for the Sechelt Nation from 1997 until 2005. He has been a consultant for the federal, Northwest Territories and First Nations governments in areas of law reform and child welfare. īefore entering politics, Simons worked as a child-protection social worker for the Ministry for Children and Family Development, as a financial assistance worker, and as the crime prevention coordinator for the Northwest Territories. He studied criminology at university, graduating with a bachelor's degree from University of Ottawa and master's degree from Simon Fraser University. Simons grew up in Montreal, with his musician father Jan Simons teaching at McGill University.
