Longtime Sackville-Cobequid NDP MLA Dave Wilson has resigned his seat in the Nova Scotia legislature without saying what he'll do next.

"A couple of opportunities are on the horizon and I'm excited about them and definitely I'll make sure people know where I'm going, but it feels right now to step back," he said just moments after tendering his resignation to the Clerk of the House.

Wilson was the longest-serving New Democrat in the House of Assembly, first elected in 2003 alongside PC MLA Chris d'Entremont and Liberal cabinet minister Keith Colwell.

"I've had the great opportunity to be in all positions of the legislature including being a backbencher of a government, being a minister in a government and I feel at this time I have accomplished a lot," he said.

"It's just time for me to look at other things."

Sackville-Cobequid MLA Dave Wilson, left, is stepping down from his role after 15 years. (Jean Laroche/CBC)

The one-time paramedic said he would continue to champion a non-profit group he set up earlier this year to support first responders.

A bitter showdown between paramedics and John Hamm's fledgling majority government in the fall of 1999 spurred Wilson to leave the profession to seek political office.

Like hundreds of other paramedics, he spent long hours in the public gallery during debate on essential services legislation. He and his colleagues walked off the job in the province's first-ever strike by paramedics on Oct. 29.

Ready to move on

Standing two floors below the spot that first sparked his passion for politics, Wilson said it felt right to end that chapter of his professional life.

"You know I remember those days just being here in the legislature, it really showed me how important the work that people who are elected to this House do on a daily basis and I do feel like I've come full circle," he said.

During his 15 years in the House, Wilson continued to fight for first responders, with some success.

"Legislation like the move-over legislation — worked very long, tirelessly on that one. But more recently a level of satisfaction knowing that the push over the last four years to have presumptive coverage for first responders for WCB benefits and knowing that that's finally enacted in October gives me a great sense of satisfaction."

First responders who suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder can more easily file for workers' compensation as a result of the law Wilson championed.

PTSD is now presumed to be a work-related injury for paramedics, firefighters, nurses and others who work in front-line care.

Wilson's third-place finish in the leadership race that current leader, Gary Burrill, won almost two years ago likely played a part in his decision to leave. But he brushed that aside Friday as a key factor.

"You could look back and say what if," he said.

"If I had of picked the seven numbers of Lotto Max when it was $60 million we'd be doing this interview on a jet going south, but to be truthful I've been proud to work with Gary as leader and the caucus that we have over the last year and a half," he said. "I think we're doing amazing work."

NDP tradition in Sackville-Cobequid

Burrill praised Wilson's work in the legislature and as the party's House leader but refused to concede this is a big loss for a party that has held the seat in Sackville-Cobequid for 34 years.

"Of course this is a major change, a big moment in Nova Scotia politics, a big moment for the NDP," he said.

Former new democrat MLA John Holm represented the constituency between 1984 and 2003.

Burrill promised a formidable NDP candidate the next time the people of Sackville-Cobequid cast a ballot.

I have all the admiration in the world for all that <a href="https://twitter.com/DaveWilsonMLA?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@DaveWilsonMLA</a> has contributed and accomplished in his 15 years as a Member of the Legislative Assembly, and my every best wish is with him as he moves into the next chapter of his life’s work. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/nspoli?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#nspoli</a> <a href="https://t.co/i5PPSeGrfD">https://t.co/i5PPSeGrfD</a> —@GaryBurrill

For his part, Wilson said it was time for him to move on.

"You know after five elections and 15 years in the legislature, representing an amazing [constituency] I feel it's just the right time for me to step away from public life, return to the private sector."

During his time in Darrell Dexter's government, Wilson held two significant cabinet portfolios — Minister of Health and Minister of Culture, Communities and Heritage.