Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull is not backing down on comments accusing his deputy Barnaby Joyce of a "shocking error of judgement", denying the public sparring between the two Coalition leaders could endanger the Liberal-National relationship.
Mr Turnbull said it was a "stressful time" for Mr Joyce after the Nationals leader accused the prime minister of "inept" and "unhelpful" remarks over his relationship with a former staffer.
Speaking at a press conference in Tasmania, Mr Turnbull said he led a "very strong Coalition" and denied attempting to encourage the Nationals to sack Mr Joyce as leader.
"There is no effort by me, or anyone else in the Liberal Party, to influence the National Party or its deliberations in any way," Mr Turnbull told reporters.
"Expressing views of disapproval or criticism of Barnaby's own conduct is not criticism of the National Party."
"I stand by what I said yesterday," he added.
The prime minister's comments came just hours after Barnaby Joyce accused his government's leader of making "inept" comments that caused "further harm".
That attack was directed at a speech by Mr Turnbull on Thursday afternoon, in which the prime minister slammed his deputy's handling of an affair with his former employee Vikki Campion, which was recently revealed in the national media.
"Barnaby made a shocking error of judgement in having an affair with a young woman working in his office. In doing so, he has set off a world of woe for those women and appalled all of us," Mr Turnbull said on Thursday evening, before encouraging Mr Joyce to "consider" his future.
Mr Joyce said those comments had angered the Nationals as they had been seen as an attempt to influence their choice of leader.
"There is nothing that we dislike more than implied intervention into the party processes of the National Party," Mr Joyce said.
"We are an independent, vertical unit and make our own decisions."
