Mr Levitt, who retained his seat in 2005 with a majority of 735, said it had been a huge privilege to represent the constituency but that it was time to move on.

"It is something I hadn't dared think about, in a sense, because I am totally committed to this job and will stay totally committed to the election and including the election campaign.

"But when I started to think about it, what life may have in store afterwards, I realised I had got ten years to do something else, " said the Labour MP, who in April will become High Peak's longest-serving MP since the Second World War.

He said: "I didn't want to go at the height of the expenses furore but in good time to give my replacement time to settle in."

After the current Parliament he also intends to spend more time with his wife, their children and grandchildren, whom he thanked for their continued support.

Mr Levitt said the last six months had been torrid.

"Rightly, MPs have suffered collective as well as individual criticism for the scandalous mess of parliamentary allowances. Steps are now being taken to stop MPs deciding on our own expenses, pay and conditions ever again.

"This is the right thing to do. We need to demonstrate that a line has been drawn. New levels of transparency, compliance and enforcement can restore confidence in Parliament and the democratic system."

He said that Labour would be much higher in the polls and looking forward to an easy fourth term were it not for the Iraq War. Mr Levitt who gave his support to the conflict said: "In retrospect I would still have voted the same way."

Mr Levitt said he was most proud of his role in ensuring the Devonshire Dome was acquired by the University of Derby.

"It is something that ultimately only happened because of my intervention, persuading ministers to give the hospital away without maximising profit," he said.

"That has been worth £25 million a year into the local economy as well as saving a wonderful building and providing a tremendous resource for the whole area.

"But the other things are the ways I have ben able to help individual constituents whether with CSA or tax credits, getting various decisions changed in a just and helpful way, that has been really rewarding."

The timetable to selecting a Labour Party candidate will now begin, with a candidate expected to be in place by the end of January.
"The election is by no means lost. A lot of things can happen in the next six months," said Mr Levitt.

"Opinion polls may be pointing to a hung parliament right now but actually we are performing better than John Major was before the 1992 election and my other message would be never forget that Conservatives believe in cutting spending in services in principle The people of High Peak would suffer from an incoming Conservative government."

Peak is a key battleground

THE HIGH Peak constituency, a Labour seat for the last three elections, looks set to be one of the key battle grounds for the General Election.
It has previously been a Conservative-held seat, apart from a period in the mid 1960s, before it went to Labour when Tony Blair took his party into Government in 1997.

Tom Levitt, a former county councillor, had failed to win the seat from Conservative Charles Hendry in the 1992 election.

However Mr Hendry's Conservative majority of 4,819 became a massive 8,791 Labour majority when Mr Levitt was elected four years later, having taken over fifty per cent of the vote.

In 2001 Mr Levitt retained his seat, this time fighting off the challenge of Conservative Simon Chapman, although his majority was reduced to 4,489

Then in 2005 the hotly contested seat saw High Peak electors again return a Labour MP.

With a turnout of 66.79 per cent Tom Levitt polled 19,809, just 735 more than Conservative Andrew Bingham who polled 19,074.

Liberal Democrat candidate Marc Godwin secured 10,000 voted while UKIP candidate Michael Schwartz polled 1,106.

It was the Liberal Democrats best showing securing twenty per cent of the vote.

Conservative Andrew Bingham is now the only candidate in place from the three main parties with an election due before June.

The Liberal Democrats are looking at selecting a new candidate after Councillor Stephen Sharp stood down.

Now the Labour Party will have to do the same and are looking to have a new candidate in place in the New Year.

Pay-off for MPs

Under the MPs' rules a Resettlement Grant is available for all Members who fail to be re-elected or who do not stand at a General Election.
The amount MPs receive depends on how old they are and how long they have served in the House of Commons.

They also receive funds to pay for winding up their offices and staff contracts.