Former Liberal leader David Speirs confirms he will head to Scotland to attend cousin’s wedding

Former Liberal leader David Speirs has wasted no time settling into life on the backbench, saying he’ll head to Scotland next week.

• Speirs’ blistering farewell as he bows out

Former Opposition leader David Speirs has confirmed that he is heading to his cousin’s wedding in Scotland, claiming he booked tickets with his travel agent yesterday.

“I’m going to go to my cousin’s wedding, I’m going to head to Scotland at the end of next week, because I was criticised for not going so you know, to hell with that,” he said on FIVEAA radio.

Mr Speirs was quick to state that he was still on the taxpayer payroll and would continue as the Member for Black – finishing off his term, though he did not comment on whether he would run for re-election.

Mr Speirs also made the bombshell claim it would be “difficult to remain in the Liberal Party” if the “two or three” people who undermined his leadership are rewarded as the party gets set to reshuffle on Monday night.

“I am not making that as an idle threat,” he said.

“I’m not threatening to go to the crossbench today, but I will watch very carefully to make sure that bad behaviour isn’t rewarded, and the game playing isn’t rewarded because South Australians deserve better.”

Mr Speirs is seemingly already persona non grata a day after quitting if the PM is any indication.

In a tongue-in-cheek segment on Adelaide’s Radio FIVEAA, guest Anthony Albanese asked hosts Will Goodings and David Penberthy: “What’s going on over there? Someone told me that the opposition leader, they’ve named him, had resigned and I said ‘who’s he? Perhaps that explains why.

PM Anthony Albanese made a cheeky dig about outgoing Opposition Leader David Speirs on Adelaide radio.

Penbo responded: “Could you name him?”

With Albo replying: “Wouldn’t have a clue and still don’t, I just know he’s gone.”

The hosts and Albo joked after the end of the segment that perhaps that was Mr Speirs’ issue all along.

In an eventful Thursday afternoon, The Advertiser revealed Mr Speirs was considering stepping down and a resignation was expected soon.

Mr Speirs then issued a statement, declaring he wanted to “spend more quality time” with his family and friends “and the demands of the role as leader makes this difficult”.

At a press conference at O’Halloran Hill’s Glenthorne National Park, Mr Speirs said: “To be honest, I’ve just had a gutful and I don’t have the energy to fight for a leadership that, quite frankly, in the current circumstances, I just don’t want to pursue anymore.”

He said he decided to quit after watching “speculation based on speculation based on nothing, over recent weeks, emerge in the papers and the Twitter-sphere’’.

Two years and four months at the helm of the Liberal Party had taken its toll on him and his family, Mr Speirs said.

“I was probably a different type of leader for the Liberal Party, a different background … the party’s never been led by someone from the southern suburbs before,” he said.

“I think I brought something different … was it too soon for me to lead the party, or was the party simply not ready for me to lead it.”