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19/02/2010
Former Minister To Leave Commons
James Purnell, a former senior cabinet minister, is to step down as an MP.
Mr Purnell, who resigned as pensions secretary following Labour's substantial defeats in last year's local and European elections, said he did not want to spend "all my life in frontline politics".
He called for Prime Minister Gordon Brown to relinquish office in the wake of electoral losses across the country.
Today the Stalybridge and Hyde MP said his decision to leave parliament was "difficult".
The 39-year-old was first elected to the Commons in 2001. He will not seek re-election at the next General Election.
Mr Purnell was a close aide to former prime minister Tony Blair, eventually serving in his Cabinet as culture secretary.
In a statement released this morning, Mr Purnell said: "I have been proud to represent the people of Stalybridge and Hyde. And this has been an extremely difficult decision to make. But I have decided that I no longer wish to be an MP.
"I have spent all my working life in or about Westminster. And while this has been a huge privilege, I've realised I don't want to have spent all my life in frontline politics."
Mr Purnell said he looks forward to completing projects as a director at centre-left think-tank at Demos.
"After that my hope is to contribute ideas to public service and to the Labour Party."
May's disastrous polls prompted Mr Purnell to leave the Cabinet, in an alleged plot to overthrow Mr Brown.
However, no other colleagues followed his lead.
He later retracted comments claiming Mr Brown staying in office would make a Tory General Election win "more, not less likely".
Mr Purnell said he hoped he would look like a "complete idiot" when Labour claimed victory at the polls.
Peter Robinson, chairman of the Stalybridge and Hyde Constituency Labour Party, said Mr Purnell had "achieved a great deal" and would be "a hard act to follow".
(PR/GK)
Mr Purnell, who resigned as pensions secretary following Labour's substantial defeats in last year's local and European elections, said he did not want to spend "all my life in frontline politics".
He called for Prime Minister Gordon Brown to relinquish office in the wake of electoral losses across the country.
Today the Stalybridge and Hyde MP said his decision to leave parliament was "difficult".
The 39-year-old was first elected to the Commons in 2001. He will not seek re-election at the next General Election.
Mr Purnell was a close aide to former prime minister Tony Blair, eventually serving in his Cabinet as culture secretary.
In a statement released this morning, Mr Purnell said: "I have been proud to represent the people of Stalybridge and Hyde. And this has been an extremely difficult decision to make. But I have decided that I no longer wish to be an MP.
"I have spent all my working life in or about Westminster. And while this has been a huge privilege, I've realised I don't want to have spent all my life in frontline politics."
Mr Purnell said he looks forward to completing projects as a director at centre-left think-tank at Demos.
"After that my hope is to contribute ideas to public service and to the Labour Party."
May's disastrous polls prompted Mr Purnell to leave the Cabinet, in an alleged plot to overthrow Mr Brown.
However, no other colleagues followed his lead.
He later retracted comments claiming Mr Brown staying in office would make a Tory General Election win "more, not less likely".
Mr Purnell said he hoped he would look like a "complete idiot" when Labour claimed victory at the polls.
Peter Robinson, chairman of the Stalybridge and Hyde Constituency Labour Party, said Mr Purnell had "achieved a great deal" and would be "a hard act to follow".
(PR/GK)
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