Surrey MP tells constituents he will retire at next election
Sir Paul Beresford will not stand for re-election
A Surrey MP has revealed his decision to retire at the next election.
Sir Paul Beresford, the Mole Valley MP, has said that he won't contest the new seat created by boundary changes by the time of the next election, which is due by January 2025.
The Surrey MP has told his constituents, and has been a Member of Parliament since 1992.
"After a career in frontline politics which began in local government in 1978, and which has seen me represent Mole Valley in Parliament since 1997, I have decided - after a great deal of thought - not to contest the new Dorking and Horley seat and instead retire at the next general election," the 76-year-old wrote in an email to constituents.
His majority over the Liberal Democrats in 2019 was 12,041.
The veteran backbencher, a practising dentist, first represented Croydon Central before switching to Mole Valley in Surrey in 1997.
A council leader before entering the House of Commons, Sir Paul served as a junior minister in Sir John Major's government and chaired the Commons Administration Committee in 2017-19.
A string of senior Tories also plan to exit Westminster, including former chancellor Sajid Javid, Scottish Conservative leader Douglas Ross and former environment secretary George Eustice.
Former health secretary Matt Hancock, who was a Conservative until he lost the whip over his I'm A Celebrity appearance, and Dehenna Davison, seen as a rising star in the Tory party, will also be quitting the Commons.