A former regional daily editor who went to a run the Press Association is retiring after 17 years with the national news agency.

Tony Watson, pictured, will leave his role as PA’s managing director, which he has held for the past 12 years, at the end of March.

Tony previously spent 13 years as editor of the Yorkshire Post, before joining PA in 2003, working in a series of editorial management roles before being appointed to its main board in 2007 and MD in 2008.

He will now work with PA Media Group’s CEO Clive Marshall and the rest of the executive team to begin a search for his successor.

Writing on his LinkedIn page, Tony said: “It’s been a joy and a privilege to work with so many great people over the years and I would just like to say a big thank you to colleagues past and present and to our customers.”

His retirement brings to a close a 42-year career in the media which also included stints in television as well PA and the YP.

In a statement, PA said: “As managing director of the news agency, Tony has shown unwavering commitment to maintaining PA’s position as one of the industry’s most respected news media brands.

“He has been the driving force behind the ongoing transformation of the agency into a digitally-focused, multi-platform news and information business.

“The rollout of PA’s Explore platform was a defining moment in that strategy and has set the agency up to continually evolve its offering for both media and non-media customers.

“At group level, Tony has played a key role in implementing the company’s ongoing diversification strategy, taking the lead on the acquisition and integration of businesses like Sticky Content and TNR and redefining the range of services that the PA Media Group provides to the marketing and communications sectors.”