Stephen Harper resigns

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Former Prime Minister Stephen Harper resigned his seat in the House of Commons today. Harper made the announcement on social media.

In it, he says:    “On seven occasions, I have been deeply humbled by your trust and support, time and again. And I leave elected office proud of what our team accomplished together.”

Harper had stepped down as Conservative party leader in October on the night he lost the election to Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau, but had chosen to remain as an MP.

He showed up routinely in the House of Commons for votes, but never spoke from the floor and remained absent from most of the weekly meetings of Conservative MPs.

Harper will now make a move into consulting on international issues alongside two of his most trusted former advisers, Ray Novak and Jeremy Hunt. he trio are listed as directors on a corporation first set up in December called Harper and  Associates Consulting.

Harper served as a Reform MP from 1993 to 1997, before taking a hiatus from politics until 2002.    That year he was elected as the leader of the Canadian Alliance and won a Calgary seat in a by-election. In 2003, he merged the party with the Progressive Conservatives and in 2004, he became leader of the Conservative Party.    He led the Conservatives to a minority government victory in the 2006 election and again in 2008, winning his first majority mandate in 2011 after an election that was forced by opposition parties.