The former Nationals leader Barnaby Joyce has taken an opportunity in parliament to declare his political opponents miss him, and want him back, as the junior coalition partner weighs up whether to move against the current party leader, Michael McCormack.

With the Nationals once again engaged in open hand-wringing about the party leadership, Labor made mischief in the chamber, concocting an excuse to ask Joyce a question about whether a motion he’d added to the notice paper would be brought on for debate.

“I know that you find me endearing, I know you miss me, I know you want me back,” Joyce said by way of preamble, before noting he was happy to take the question from Labor, and any other question, because “God knows I’ve got a bit of spare time up here”.

Parliamentary questions are not normally directed to backbenchers.

The convulsion in the Nationals has vexed Liberals, given the Morrison government’s lower house majority hangs in the balance with the Wentworth byelection contest looming this weekend – and it caps off a horror week for the government.

Concerns about Michael McCormack’s performance as Nationals leader have been bubbling away for some time, but crystallised during an internal government debate about the creation of an agricultural visa for seasonal workers.

Nationals have pushed for the visa but Liberals resisted, saying more evidence was needed of worker shortages in the bush before creating a special visa category.

After weeks of internal debate, Scott Morrison announced last weekend that farmers should report their employment needs for short-term harvest work to the National Harvest Labour Information Service to access job-matching services, and he said welfare recipients would lose benefits for up to four weeks if they declined an opportunity for work “without reasonable excuse”.

Some Nationals were furious about not prevailing on the issue, and attributed the lack of an outcome to McCormack lacking influence with the Liberals.

With internal tensions clearly in evidence, in an effort to give McCormack some political cover, Morrison said at the start of the week he had not killed a proposal to create a special visa for agricultural workers. He said the government was still assessing that as an option.

With the internal ructions smoothing the path, Joyce, who lost the top job following the furore over his affair with a former staffer and now partner, Vikki Campion, and allegations of sexual harassment made by rural advocate Catherine Marriott – declared on Wednesday he would return to the National party leadership if it was offered to him. But Joyce has rejected suggestions he is “collecting the numbers” or canvassing.

Michael McCormack for his part has declared he is not going anywhere, and has the “absolute solid support” of his party room.

A long-time Joyce supporter, the Queensland National Michelle Landry, told Sky News on Thursday McCormack ought to be given a fair go, but she also referenced a return scenario for Joyce down the track.

“I have spoken to a lot of my colleagues,” she said. “No one is interested in change of leadership, leadership challenges. We’re happy with Michael to remain as our leader.

“Barnaby is keen down the track to take over the leadership. And as he said, if it was offered to him, if Michael stood down, he’d be prepared to put his hat in the ring for that. But he certainly hasn’t been going around doing the numbers.”

With no active canvassing, Nationals say the situation is unpredictable. Some say it is possible that a delegation could prevail on McCormack as soon as next week, while others predict the saga could drag on unresolved until the end of the year.

Joyce is a divisive figure internally. He has long-time supporters, some of whom feel their former leader is the best prospect of saving their seats at the next federal election, and there are colleagues who view him as a complete liability for the Nationals, who will sink their fortunes when Australians go to the polls.