Witnesses to the discussion said Mr Turnbull said he should leave Parliament House to see the governor-general at his home at Yarralumla in order to take the nation to the polls. "I should just drive to Yarralumla, notify the governor-general and go to an election," he said. Angry and frustrated at the way the leadership challenge had brought the government to a halt, Mr Turnbull argued the Parliament should be given "back to the people" as soon as possible. Malcolm Turnbull speaks to the media about the Liberal Party leadership turmoil. Credit:Dominic Lorrimer The declaration was a sign of the extreme tensions at the top of the government after Mr Turnbull had told Mr Dutton he was ineligible to sit in Parliament and should not be named prime minister even if the Liberal party room elected him leader.

Loading Mr Turnbull had spoken to the governor-general about his belief that Mr Dutton’s family ownership of two childcare centres meant he had a pecuniary interest in an agreement with the Commonwealth and that this breached section 44 of the constitution and disqualified him from Parliament. Mr Dutton rejected those claims at the time but moved months afterwards to adjust the childcare ownership structure so he could quell doubts over his eligibility before this year's federal election. The Thursday morning discussion in the prime minister’s suite in Parliament House included Mr Turnbull and his closest advisers including the then workplace minister Craig Laundy, principal private secretary Sally Cray and senior adviser David Bold. Mr Laundy, Ms Cray and Mr Bold all argued against the visit to the governor-general and Mr Turnbull stepped back from the idea even though he believed the Australian people would want to cast their verdicts on the leadership chaos.

"Look, I think the public will be crying out for an election, clearly," Mr Turnbull told the media in a press conference in the prime minister’s courtyard at about 1pm that day. "It may be that the spill motion is not carried and I remain prime minister and we can try to restore some stability. "But assuming it is carried and there is a new leader of the Liberal Party, that person will have to, obviously, satisfy the governor-general that they can command a majority on the floor of the House of Representatives." In a step toward a constitutional clash, Mr Turnbull expected Sir Peter to reject Mr Dutton’s claim to the prime ministership if he was elected leader, making an election almost inevitable. As reported in June, Mr Turnbull sparred with Attorney-General Christian Porter over whether the then Liberal leader should raise Mr Dutton’s eligibility with the governor-general.

Loading Mr Porter argued that Mr Dutton’s eligibility was a factor for the party room to consider but not a matter for the governor-general, who would appoint a prime minister based on who could command a majority in Parliament. Mr Porter also warned Mr Turnbull that he would go public with his argument on this question if Mr Turnbull declared the governor-general could not appoint Mr Dutton. "If you say this at your press conference I will rebut it," Mr Porter said shortly before Mr Turnbull was to speak to the media in the courtyard. Mr Turnbull signalled his concerns about Mr Dutton and expressed his belief that an election would be needed but did not reveal his conversations with the governor-general.