A long-standing Carmarthenshire MP will not put himself forward for the next General Election on July 4.

Jonathan Edwards was first elected for Carmarthen East & Dinefwr in 2010 and is set to step down from Westminster.

He is the only politician ever to win four elections and is the longest-serving Parliamentarian.

Mr Edwards said: “Serving my home communities has been the most incredible honour and privilege. I hope the people of Carmarthen East and Dinefwr will feel that I have done the job to the best of my ability, with integrity and for the right reasons. 

“I am proud of some of the great policy victories we have achieved such as leading the charge to scrap the Housing Revenue Account Subsidy Scheme in Wales which saves Welsh Councils an estimated £100 million per annum, enabling those that kept their housing stock to build for the first time in years. 

“I feel an enormous sense of pride when I see new Council houses being built in Carmarthenshire. 

“I’m also proud of uncovering the scandalous financial loss to Wales resulting from HS2 and other Barnett scandals, making the case for a Wales specific Public Sector Pension investment fund and securing one of the first Levelling Up bids in the UK for the Tywi Valley Cycle path between Llandeilo and Carmarthen.”

However, the local MP is now looking forward to spending more time with his family and getting involved in the community in a non-political way.

He continued: “I am now looking towards the future with my beautiful children that bring joy to everyone they encounter; I can’t wait to spend more time with them having lost out on so much of their early years.  

“And to my amazing partner in Fflur who gives me faith that the future will be one full of love and happiness. I have much to look forward to.

“On Saturday I played cricket for my beloved Ammanford Wildboars Centurions Cricket Team. 

“The anthracite grey of the Amman Valley runs deep in my blood.  I reflected that there is more than one way to represent the communities where I come from and call home.

“I look forward to deepening my engagement with the towns fabulous sporting teams, especially coaching the Under 10 cricket team. 

“It astounds me how quickly the players are developing.  The proudest moment of my political career was when Ammanford RFC asked me to become the Clubs Honorary Vice President.  

Finally, Mr Edwards is thankful to residents who have voted for him in the past.

“The people of the Amman Valley have stuck by me through thick and thin and I am proud to be one of you.

“Politics is a tough and all-encompassing occupation and I genuinely wish my successor well.  For myself, I can’t wait to be home where I belong.”