Tara Jeffrey
Lambton-Kent-Middlesex MPP and Ontario’s Labour Minister Monte McNaughton has announced his resignation.
The news came Friday in a statement from McNaughton, announcing his departure from politics after more than a decade.
“After much soul searching over the summer months, I have accepted a job in the private sector,” the statement reads.
McNaughton, 46, said he’s stepping down from his cabinet duties “immediately” and will be resigning his seat in the days ahead.
“It’s been the honour of a lifetime to serve the people of Ontario as Minister of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development for more than four years,” wrote McNaughton. “I want to express my deepest gratitude to the people of Lambton-Kent-Middlesex. It has been a privilege to have represented you since 2011.
The move is not linked to the Greenbelt scandal, according to McNaughton, who is now the third minister to resign from Premier Doug Ford’s cabinet this month.
“I realize that recent events will cause some to speculate about the reasons for my departure,” he stated. “I want those people to know that my decision is completely unrelated to those events.”
Earlier this summer, the high-profile MPP was in Sarnia to announce some $365,000 in funding for a new, innovative millwright training program.
The riding of Lambton-Kent-Middlesex includes the Lambton municipalities of Brooke-Alvinston and Lambton Shores; the townships of Dawn-Euphemia and Warwick; and Kettle Point Indian Reserve No. 44 and Walpole Island Indian Reserve No. 46.