Cabinet Minister Sam Lotu-Iiga says he will quit politics at the next election. Photo / Mark Mitchell
Cabinet Minister Sam Lotu-Iiga says he will quit politics at the next election. Photo / Mark Mitchell
Cabinet Minister Sam Lotu-Iiga says he will quit politics at the next election.
The Local Government Minister and MP for Maungakiekie said this morning he was leaving Parliament "for a variety of reasons".
"It's been an absolute honour and a privilege to serve the people of Maungakiekie and to bepart of the John Key and National-led Government," he said.
"I am in my 10th year of politics, both local and national and have enjoyed it immensely.
"However, I have decided, for a variety of reasons that I should step down from politics at the next election. I will be exploring new opportunities and I am also looking forward to spending more time with my wife and my young children.
"I've been thinking about this for a few months now and made the decision not to seek re-election earlier this month."
Lotu-Iiga entered Parliament in 2008, and was previously a councillor in the old Auckland City Council.
He said he would stay on as the MP for Maungakiekie until the general election. But he will give up his ministerial portfolios - local government, associate health, ethnic affairs, and Pacific peoples - when a new Cabinet was sworn in.
Prime Minister Bill English is expected to announced a reshuffle of the National caucus this week.
There has been speculation that Lotu-Iiga could be in line for a demotion as part of English's reshuffle.
He was previously the Minister for Corrections, but lost that portfolio last year to Judith Collins, partly because of his management of the "fight clubs" scandal at the Serco-run Mt Eden Corrections Facility.
Lotu-Iiga said he made up his mind before John Key announced his plans to quit as Prime Minister last week. He had "always intended" to inform his party of his decision this week, even before Key announced plans to quit.
