The former Queensland premier, Campbell Newman, has ruled out a shock political comeback which would not have washed with his wife, Lisa.

Newman has admitted his spouse “wouldn’t cop” a return to politics after a day of intense speculation when it was revealed he was considering a federal tilt.

The former premier and Brisbane lord mayor had been touted as a prime candidate for the Liberal National party in this year’s election after Brisbane MP Teresa Gambaro’s stood down.

But he has told News Corp he has too many other business commitments.

“I am ruling it out. It is a definite no,” he told the Australian.

“I can’t just walk away from a range of other commitments and obligations I have with various businesses.”

He had spoken to his wife who had been pleased to see him free from politics 13 months ago, and she “wouldn’t cop it”.

Newman instead endorsed the National Retail Association’s chief executive, Trevor Evans.

A former LNP MP, Gavin King, who wrote Newman’s biography, revealed on Thursday morning his old boss was “weighing up” contesting this year’s federal election.

It is understood that Newman had also been seeking advice from his inner circle over whether he should run, but attempts to contact him on Thursday were unsuccessful.

A first-term premier who lost his own seat of Ashgrove in last year’s election loss to Labor, he would have started as an outsider to win the tight seat of Brisbane.

The short-lived speculation gave former adversaries the chance to remind Newman, who lost a 72-seat majority from when he was elected in 2012, of his unpopularity with voters.

Queensland’s environment minister, Steven Miles, was the most scathing, insisting he was “under the delusion” people no longer despised him.

“They haven’t forgotten how much they hate you,” Miles said before mentioning the Newman government’s controversial mass sacking of public servants.

“After all, you’ve sacked nearly half of them.”

The education minister, Kate Jones, who deposed Newman in Ashgrove, continued in the same vein, saying Brisbane voters “deserve a local member of parliament that is there to serve them, not themselves”.