OTTAWA - Nova Scotia MP Bill Casey says he won't run in the next federal election.
The former Conservative -- who became an Independent after being dumped by Prime Minister Stephen Harper -- says it's "time to explore new directions."
Casey says he wanted to announce his decision now in case the Jan. 27 budget triggers another election.
He won seven elections and lost one since 1988.
Harper kicked him out of the Conservative caucus for voting against the federal budget in March 2007.
The MP defied his boss because the budget changed the federal equalization formula, a move Casey says gutted the 2005 Atlantic Accord.
That federal-provincial deal that was supposed to protect the province's natural resource revenues from federal clawbacks.
Casey called the life of an MP "the most interesting and satisfying career anyone could have."
