David Speirs, the former leader of the opposition in South Australia, has spoken out about how he was unexpectedly removed off the frontbench while on vacation.
The Member of Parliament representing Black’s southern suburbs district has disclosed that he and his new employer are not on good terms, and he is now thinking of leaving politics entirely.
Two weeks ago, Speirs was demoted from the front bench of the Opposition after Vincent Tarzia took over as Liberal leader.
However, Speirs was unaware of his demotion until the media made announcements about it.
“Look I think that was a little bit disheartening, goes to… how the party is operating at the moment I suppose,” added the politician.
Only a few weeks prior, Tarzia declared Speirs to be “a friend, a supporter, and a confidante”.
Speirs, meanwhile, insists Tarzia is merely a colleague and claims his successor has left the Liberal Party in disarray.
“I think there are very significant challenges,” he stated.
“From what I can gather there are leaks, there is a lack of team, there is a lack of vision, plan, momentum.”
With what he describes as an Everest-sized mountain the party has to scale, he feels that having a front-bench position for himself would have helped.
“I could’ve been part of the rebuild, it’s a substantial rebuild, I’m not and will contribute from the sidelines,” he stated.
Speirs is still a Liberal Party MP for the time being, although he is currently thinking about leaving the political field before the next election.
And he thinks the party might lose his seat as a result. “Look, I think we’ll lose my seat if I’m not the candidate there,” he stated.
