Spence was increasingly disillusioned with the UVF and he imparted these views to fellow inmates at Long Kesh. According to Billy Mitchell, Spence quizzed him and others sent to the Maze about why they were there, seeking an ideological answer to his question. When the prisoner was unable to provide one Spence would then seek to convince them of the wisdom of his more politicised path, something that he accomplished with Mitchell. David Ervine and Billy Hutchinson were among the other UVF men imprisoned in the mid-1970s to become disciples of Spence. In 1977 he publicly condemned the use of violence for political gain, on the grounds that it was counter-productive. In 1978 Spence left the UVF altogether. His brother Bobby, also a UVF member, died in October 1980 inside the Maze, a few months after the death of their brother Billy.