Clive Palmer will be referred to the federal police and Australian Taxation Office over the Queensland Nickel scandal.
Liberal-National Party MP Ewen Jones told federal parliament on Tuesday he believed the besieged nickel refinery was part of a "phoenix operation", where assets and cash are moved to other entities before a business folds.
It is understood Mr Jones will write to the AFP, ATO and parliament's privileges committee, seeking inquiries into Mr Palmer's role as a "shadow director".
Mr Jones told parliament under privilege Mr Palmer had been part of a deliberate exercise not to pay creditors or staff entitlements to hundreds of employees.
He urged the Australian Securities and Investments Commission, the taxation office and federal police to "look at what has happened here and hold those responsible to account".
"At the end of the day, the people who have worked at Queensland Nickel have done nothing wrong," he said.
"The role of the member for Fairfax (Mr Palmer) cannot be underestimated here."
Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull told parliament on Tuesday he believed Mr Palmer, who holds the Queensland seat of Fairfax, was "at all times in charge of Queensland Nickel".
Mr Palmer said he had been misrepresented by Mr Turnbull.
"I was not in control of the management of the company at the relevant time and the decision not to pay workers' entitlements was not made by me or any director of any company that I own shares in," he told parliament.
He added the decision had been made by Queensland Nickel's administrator.
Nationals leader Barnaby Joyce said the issue was not about an investigation, but rather how Queensland Nickel workers could keep their jobs.
"They don't want to hear about the circus - they want to hear about their jobs," he told reporters in Canberra on Wednesday.
