John Lewis boss Andy Street has bid to become the Conservative candidate for the mayor of West Midlands.

Street said if his bid was successful he would leave his role as managing director at the retail giant.

He will face a formal selection process by the Conservative party, which could end his nine-year reign of John Lewis.

“Should Andy be successful in his application, he has agreed with the chairman that he should step down from his role and a further announcement will be made to confirm the succession plan for the future leadership of the John Lewis brand,” a spokesperson for John Lewis said.

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The winning candidate will be announced September 29 following the party conference.

If Street is successful he would oversee regional affairs including road networks, housing supply and bus services and lead the combined authority covering Birmingham, Coventry, Dudley, Walsall, Sandwell, Solihull and Wolverhampton.

A conservative spokesperson said: “Our candidate will be announced shortly before the start of our party conference. At our conference in Birmingham they will set out their plans to make the West Midlands an even more prosperous and successful part of the country.”

This will not be Street‘s first foray into politics. He has served on a number of government bodies in the past including the Prime Minister‘s business advisory group. 

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