The Parti Québécois is losing one of its most seasoned politicians.
Louise Harel has announced she's ready to leave politics.
The PQ MNA for Hochelaga-Maisonneuve will not run for office in the next provincial election.
Harel has been an active member of the PQ for nearly four decades and was first elected in 1981.
Harel served as a cabinet minister under former premier René Lévesque (Minister of Cultural Communities and Immigration), and under Jacques Parizeau (Minister of Employment).
Harel also held the post of Minister of Municipal Affairs after being re-elected in 1998.
During her tenure in the ministry, she introduced a bill forcing the merger of several municipalities into larger mega-cities in Gatineau, Montreal, Quebec City, Trois-Rivières, Saguenay, Longueuil and Sherbrooke.
The "amalgamation" bill angered many local politicians and became an election issue in 2003, when then Liberal leader Jean Charest promised to allow municipalities to vote on whether they wanted to stay in their mega-cities.
Harel became the first woman to be elected as national assembly speaker in 2002, a position she held for one year.
Harel also served as interim leader of the PQ when Bernard Landry stepped down in 2005.
