Scott Morrison wanted the start of the first parliamentary sitting week of the year to focus on the Queen as she celebrates her Platinum Jubilee.

Instead, it will be about the prime minister and his government after texting scandals, a decline in popularity and an elderly care crisis – not an ideal position ahead of an election just months away.

After being branded a ‘horrendous, awful person’ and a ‘complete psychopath’ in a leaked text message exchange between former NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian and a federal cabinet minister, another from Barnaby Joyce was even more damaging .

While the text was sent before Joyce returned to the role of deputy prime minister and national leader, he called Morrison “a hypocrite and a liar”. Joyce later apologized.

Morrison dismissed the text messages, saying he remained focused on getting the country through the pandemic, but shadow treasurer Jim Chalmers described the government as a “smoldering ruin”.

Aside from the assassinations, a church service will be held before the House of Representatives and Senate get to work on Tuesday afternoon.

Morrison will kick off the parliamentary year with a speech to mark the Queen’s 70th birthday.

On the government’s agenda are religious discrimination laws, reforms to the National Disability Insurance scheme, federal domestic violence orders and changes to the pension loan scheme.

The most controversial of these – religious discrimination laws – are scheduled for debate in the House all day Tuesday and drafted for the Senate on Wednesday.

Laws should be changed to ensure that schools cannot exclude students with same-sex attraction and gender-diverse students.

There may be further changes following two investigative reports released on Friday.

Conservatives argue that the bill should be aimed squarely at protecting the freedom of religious individuals and organizations, not creating new barriers to that freedom.

But moderates say concurrent changes to other laws are needed to ensure that religious rights do not trump the right of LGBTIQ people to be free from discrimination.

When it comes to voting on bills, the government will have lost at least one vote in the Senate with former Northern Territory CLP senator Sam McMahon sitting on the cross bench, angry at his abandonment as a candidate in the next elections and the treatment by her celebrates.

Several other government senators concerned about “vaccine mandates” have threatened to boycott the legislation until their demands are met.

The lower house listed superannuation, NDIS and election laws for debate during the week.