MP and former Minister Joyce Quin has announced her intention to quit Westminster politics.

The Tyneside MP said she will not stand again at the next election for her Gateshead East and Washington West seat, amid speculation that she wants to be leader of a future elected North-East regional assembly.

She told a meeting of her local Labour Party that she wanted to remain an active constituency MP until the next election, but also wanted to concentrate on the campaign to establish a regional assembly.

She refused to say whether she would stand for leader. "At the moment we haven't even had a referendum on bringing in regional government," she said. ''Obviously I am committed to regional government, and would love to play a part in a future assembly in some role.''

Ms Quin said that the earliest possible date for setting up an assembly would be at the end of the current Parliament in 2005or 2006, or the beginning of the next.

She said it was vital that a North-East assembly brought benefits to the whole region, not just places such as Tyneside.

''Teesside is also a vital part of the region's economy - we must not only use its strengths, but also tackle weaknesses like the still high levels of unemployment and the shortage of some skills. We need to bring more people into higher education."

Ms Quin made her announcement to quit her seat now, to give time for the party to search for a replacement without undue haste.