Cabinet Office minister Francis Maude has said he would be “very surprised” not to continue in public life after he steps down as an MP.
The Conservative MP for Horsham, who has served as minister for the Cabinet Office since 2010, announced earlier this year that he would not be running for re-election in May.
It has since been reported that Maude could continue in government as a member of the House of Lords should the Conservatives lead the next administration. Maude was specifically pressed on those rumours by Sky News this morning.
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“It's not for me to speculate about my future,” he replied. “But there is a huge amount still to do and what I'm doing now is working really hard to ensure that whoever is in post - and I deeply hope and I'm optimistic that it will be a Conservative government after May the 7th - that it's as well prepared as it can be to continue this work."
Maude added: "Politics and public service are deep in my DNA, it's what I spent most of my adult life doing. So I'd be very surprised if I'm saying goodbye to it all forever. But exactly how I'm involved is a matter not for me, but there is still a huge amount of work to do in this area.”
Full transcript of Maude’s Sky News appearance available to subscribers of PoliticsHome.com