Speculation has been swirling in Wellington that Mr Heatley will be the next National Party MP to stand down at the next election after Chris Tremain, Paul Hutchison, Cam Calder, and Chris Auchinvole announced they would not seek re-election next year.
Mr Heatley told the Northern Advocate yesterday he had nothing to announce about his future.
"(My wife) Jenny and I will make a decision about our future in due course," he said.
"But I will say I love being the MP for Whangarei."
Mr Heatley replaced John Banks as the National Party's MP for Whangarei in 1999 and has been re-elected with healthy majorities in the four general elections since.
If he was to stand down the Whangarei National Party branch would hold a selection process to find a suitable replacement.
Mr Heatley became a Cabinet Minister in 2008 with the housing and fisheries portfolios, but stood down from his ministerial posts in 2010 before returning 34 days later after being cleared of any intentional wrongdoing over the misuse of his ministerial credit card.
He had signed an expense claim for a dinner when, in fact, the $70 charge was for bottles of wine at a National Party function.
In January Mr Heatley was stripped of his Energy and Resources and Housing ministerial portfolios in a Cabinet reshuffle.
- By Mike Dinsdale of the Northern Advocate
