If and when the next federal election is called, there will be a new person from the Guelph riding sitting in Parliament.
Current Guelph MP Lloyd Longfield announced on Wednesday that he will not be seeking another term. He told CJOY and Global News that he is fine, health-wise, and it was just time to move on.
“You want to leave before your ‘best before’ date,” Longfield said. “There is still a lot of work to do in the next couple of years, but I think it also great for the community to find another person to contribute.”
Longfield was first elected as MP after running as a candidate for the Liberals in the 2015 federal election. He would successfully be re-elected in 2019 and 2021.
“I’ll be 69 years old by the time the next election comes through (in 2025),” said Longfield. “My 60s would have been spent serving Guelph as a member of Parliament.”
Longfield said it was an honour and a wonderful experience representing the city of Guelph. He said he leaves with nothing but good feelings about having had the chance to do the job.
In a news release, Longfield lists a number of highlights during his time as MP. They include a $4-billion housing accelerator fund that was announced by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau during a stop in Guelph in March that will help communities unlock new housing supply by speeding up development and approvals.
Another memory he said will cherish was the time Afghan, Syrian and Ukrainian refugees arrived in Canada.
“Seeing the community respond when there is a real need is something that I’ll be reflecting on for a long time.”
Longfield said he will be staying in Guelph after his term as MP has ended. He hopes to keep serving the community down the road.
“Something I enjoyed doing before politics was being involved in different parts of the community as a volunteer and I would still like to keep doing that.”
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