The prime minister announced that the husband of Queen Elizabeth II, Prince Philip, was to be awarded a knighthood of the Order of Australia. The decision was widely condemned and seen by many as out of touch. Queensland Liberal National MP Warren Entsch said he couldn’t understand why the decision was made, while another Queensland MP Ewen Jones said he couldn’t see the point of the announcement. Abbott later said the decision was a “captain’s call” and the decision had been his choice.

Queensland Liberal Jane Prentice, reeling from the election results that saw a first-term Liberal National Party government in Queensland lose its majority, refused to endorse Tony Abbott’s continued leadership. She said his upcoming press club speech would be a make or break moment.

Prime minister Tony Abbott addressed the National Press Club and said that only voters should have the power to hire and fire him. Abbott warned of making a “difficult situation worse” when they give in to short-term fears. However in a further sign of defiance from his own party, later in the day Queensland backbencher Andrew Laming released a statement announcing that he will put forward a private members’ bill to abolish the knights and dames honours system. The motion was backed by former whip Warren Entsch.

Two more Liberal Party members broke rank and declared the prime minister no longer had their full support. West Australian MP Dennis Jensen said the party could no longer continue with Abbott at the helm, and said he told the prime minister he no longer had Jensen’s support. Queensland MP Mal Brough also said Abbott no longer had his unconditional support later in the day. Brough specifically highlighted the Medicare co-payment policy and cuts to the real wages of defence force personnel as issues of concern. The immigration minister, Peter Dutton, came to Abbott’s defence and said it was unfair that he was being “sabotaged in each media cycle”.

Former assistant treasurer Arthur Sinodinos said that his support for Abbott was “not unconditional”. When Sinodinos - who is also former prime minister John Howard’s chief of staff - was asked if Abbott will remain prime minister, he said “ask me next week”. Queensland MP Teresa Gambaro wrote in The Australian that “a leader should not lie - to their colleagues or the Australian people”. Former Victorian premier Jeff Kennett said the leadership was now terminal and “needs to be resolved quickly”.

Trade minister Andrew Robb acknowledged that the government had made mistakes and surprised voters with the budget, including controversial policies like the Medicare copayment and university deregulation. But he said “the fact is that if something happened on Tuesday which led to a spill we would be seen as a bunch of amateurs”. Robb, like several backbenchers, argued that the prime minister needed to be given more time to show he was responding to backbenchers’ concerns.

Asked about the level of support for the prime minister, education minister Christopher Pyne said counting party room numbers was an “inexact science” and that he “certainly hopes” Tony Abbott would be prime minister next Wednesday.

Later in the day West Australian MP Luke Simpkins announced he would move a spill motion, and fellow West Australian MP Don Randall said he would second it. The decision drew immediate rebuke from Tasmanian MP Andrew Nikolic.

The prime minister made a brief appearance in Sydney to confirm the motion would be brought forward.

The prime minister, Tony Abbott, the deputy prime minister, Warren Truss, and the deputy Liberal leader, Julie Bishop made a joint appearance in Townsville. Abbott said he anticipated the spill motion to bring on a leadership ballot would fail, adding that Australia did not want to see a government “turn into some kind of Game of Thrones”. Bishop said she would vote against a spill motion.

The prime minister announced that he would move the party room meeting a day forward to Monday morning. In another brief press conference he said that the “last thing Australia needs right now is instability and uncertainty”.

Former assistant treasurer Arthur Sinodinos criticised the decision to move the spill motion forward. He then said he would vote in favour of the motion to bring on the spill. Queensland MP Teresa Gambaro said that the party can no longer be governed in an “internal climate of fear and intimidation”.

The communications minister Malcolm Turnbull provoked further speculation about whether or not he would run for the leadership if the spill motion succeeds. He attended a fundraiser in Sydney alongside Julie Bishop and described the prime minister’s decision to move the party meeting forward as a “captain’s call”.