The MP announced his intention to step down from the party on social media on Friday following a dispute over his inclusion on the electoral list for central Luxembourg.

In an announcement posted to Facebook on Friday, Roy Reding confirmed his plans to leave the ADR, citing the party's decision not to let him stand as a central candidate in the upcoming parliamentary elections as his primary motivation.

Calling it a "flagrant breach of trust" after serving as the party's incumbent member of parliament for 10 years, Reding said he had informed the Chamber president of his intentions, adding that he had never seen such a thing in his political experience.

"My conclusion is to say, very simply, that if I am not good enough to lead the electoral lists, then I am not good enough to represent the ADR in the Chamber."

Reding said he would refrain from participating in quarrels, unnecessary discussions, intrigues and fights. He added that the so-called "people's discourse", outwardly broadcast by the ADR recently, was not compatible with the party's fundamental liberal ideas.

Alex Penning, the ADR's general secretary, responded that he was surprised by Reding's decision, but that no final decision has yet been made about the electoral lists.

A spokesperson for the Chamber of Deputies commented that Reding has not resigned as an MP, merely from the ADR. Reding is yet to specify whether he plans to stand as an independent candidate in the next election.

Reding, who has represented the ADR in parliament since 2013, began his political career with the LSAP. In 2009, the Luxembourg City-born state attorney stood as a candidate for the ADR in the parliamentary elections, coming second to Jacques-Yves Henckes, before finally being elected to the Chamber in 2013. Up until the 2017 municipal elections, he also represented the ADR on the capital's municipal council.

In the 2018 parliamentary elections, Reding was selected as the first candidate on the ADR's list for central Luxembourg, winning 2,000 votes more than Alex Penning.

The party has been represented by an MP from the central district in the Chamber of Deputies since 2004. If Reding sees out the rest of this legislative period as an independent MP, the ADR's representatives at the Krautmaart will drop to just 3 members.

ADR response - Friday afternoon

The ADR officially responded to Reding's announcement on Friday afternoon, claiming his presence within the Chamber and on party committees had been lacking.

In a statement issued swiftly following Reding's social media posts, the ADR said he had been absent from around half of all parliamentary sessions, which would account for his likely absence from the party's electoral lists in Luxembourg's central district.

The party went on to say that, as Reding's mandate clearly belongs to the ADR, he should be required to resign from the Chamber so that Penning could take his place in parliament.

No intention of leaving politics

Reding said he was not ready to leave politics. He later told RTL that the number of personal votes he received in the last election showed his mandate did not depend on the party alone. He fully plans to stand in the upcoming legislative elections on 8 October, and said he was already in talks with another party to that end.