Abbott to defend position as Australian PM as spill called for next Tuesday

Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott will be forced to defend his leadership next Tuesday after a spill motion was declared by Western Australian Liberal MP Luke Simpkins on Friday.

The motion, which has been seconded by fellow Western Australian federal MP Don Randall, will see the leadership of the federal government put to a vote at next week's party room meeting.

Abbott's future has been the subject of increased pressure from backbenchers in the last fortnight as poor polling figures and the results of the Queensland state election heaped more pressure on the embattled prime minister.

He has also had to deal with increased media speculation suggesting deputy party leader Julie Bishop and former party front man Malcolm Turnbull may vie for his position as Australia's leader.

Simpkins announced the motion via an email to fellow Liberal colleagues on Friday, with reports circulating that he had called the prime minister beforehand to inform him of his decision.

"In the last two weeks I have been inundated with emails and walk-ins to my electorate office, all questioning the direction the government is being led in," Simpkins' email read. "The knighthood issue was for many the final proof of a disconnection with the people.

"These contacts have come from many people that I personally know and are firm supporters, in some cases they are booth workers as well.

"I think that we must bring this to a head and test the support of the leadership in the party room.

"I have therefore submitted to the chief government whip a motion to spill the leadership positions of the federal parliament Liberal party. The spill motion should be considered via a secret ballot as the first item of business in our party room meeting. The motion was seconded by Don Randall, who shares the same views as myself.

"I look forward to your support in this matter. It gives you all an opportunity to either indorse the Prime Minister or to seek a new direction.

"As I have said in the past, I have no frontbench ambitions. I just want to make sure that the economic vandals do not get back into power and our children and grandchildren are not left to pay Labor's bill. I do this because I believe it is in the best interests of the people of our country." Endi