The source said Mr Turnbull "didn’t care about the numbers", when asked if the Liberal leader had adequate support to stave off an expected challenge on Monday.

There is a growing view within shadow cabinet that Mr Turnbull’s leadership is untenable but they want a seamless transition to another candidate.

A number of media organisations reported today that Liberal deputy Julie Bishop had urged Mr Turnbull to step aside but a spokesman for Ms Bishop later said the reports were incorrect.

The current proposed arrangement would give the two broad strands of the party something. Mr Hockey is moderate and would have broader community appeal than Mr Abbott. The right would get the key jobs of deputy and shadow treasurer, as well as deferring the ETS bills.

Being deputy might also help Mr Dutton hold his seat, or increase his chances of getting another one if anything comes up.

Until now, Mr Hockey had been a staunch supporter of Mr Turnbull and the position he has taken towards supporting Labor's amended ETS.

But this morning, Mr Hockey tweeted the following: "Hey team re The ETS. Give me your views please on the policy and political debate. I really want your feedback."

Sources close to Mr Hockey say this was a deliberate hint by the shadow treasurer that he was prepared to change his view and accommodate the anti-ETS conservatives.

Senior Liberal sources have told Rural Press that once deposed Mr Turnbull would quit the party and politics, and the Liberals would also lose the seat of Wentworth.

As one source said "he's history".

A party room meeting is said to be scheduled for Monday morning but there is also speculation that Mr Turnbull may not even stay in the job until then.

While many expected yesterday would be the day for a vote given the outcome of a spill motion and defeat of a deferral motion, the insistence of senior Liberals to speak out against their leader has triggered implosion, and could be the start of deeper ideological splits and even a complete restructure of the party.

There are some in the Press Gallery already forecasting The Nationals to be big winners from this as they attract former Liberals potentially to their ranks.

Others suggest Mr Turnbull could be the leader of a breakaway moderate Liberal Party which stands for climate change action at the next election.

Meanwhile, the Government is still refusing to say whether it will use "the guillotine" to stifle debate on the emissions trading scheme and bring forward a vote, even though it insists the legislation must be dealt with by 3.45 pm today.

Parliamentary Secretary for Climate Change, Greg Combet, told journalists in Canberra this morning that he would not speculate on the use of the guillotine although he acknowledged its use was an option.

"The Government's goal is to get the legislation through," Mr Combet said this morning.

"This is a deal for this week.

"The Government went forward in good faith to negotiate the agreed package."

Mr Combet welcomed a commitment by embattled Liberal leader, Mr Turnbull, to stick to the deal reached with the Government, including seeing it passed today despite the increasing opposition from senior members within the Coalition.

Mr Combet said if a deal was not reached today it could only be concluded that the "extremists and conspiracy theorists" within the Liberal Party had won a war inside the Coalition.

"Mr Turnbull has done the right thing by adopting the approach that a deal is a deal," Mr Combet said.

"It is time, in the national interest, that this issue be resolved.

"If 3.45pm comes around we can conclude the extremists have the upper hand.

"We have done a lot of advocacy to explain this legislation.

"There has been extensive debate about it."

Mr Combet said he was not convinced of claims of a "deluge" of emails to Liberal and National MPs urging them to vote against the bill.

Earlier today, Mr Turnbull vowed publicly that he would not step down and would "stay leader until the partyroom removes me as leader".

"I will not take a backward step, there's too much at stake. It's just not the credibility of the party," he said.

He attacked the climate sceptics in the party, accusing them of trying to damage the Liberal party.

Mr Turnbull said the Liberal Party would be wiped out at the next federal election if it is fought on the issue of climate change action.

He said the public would not view the issue as being about the intricate designs of an ETS, but which party was more willing to take action on climate change.

"The Australian people want their government to get on with the job of taking action on climate change," he told ABC this morning.

"It's not just a question of our political credibility, but a question of our integrity," he said, arguing the Liberal partyroom had agreed to the deal struck with the Government and that should now be honoured.

Mr Turnbull was confident the amended legislation would be passed by his supporters in the Senate.

"I'm confident that the Senate or a substantial number of them will act in accordance with the decision of the shadow cabinet and endorsed by the party room."

But he noted that "there's a minority in the Liberal Party who will do anything to ensure the party does not take action on climate change", singling out Sen. Minchin and his belief in a left-wing conspiracy as an example.