Prime Minister Scott Morrison will elevate Linda Reynolds to cabinet on Saturday.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison will elevate Linda Reynolds to cabinet on Saturday.Credit:Alex Ellinghausen

Mr Pyne will remain in cabinet until his retirement,but Mr Ciobo will be immediately replaced by Senator Reynolds,who has enjoyed a meteoric rise since joining Parliament in 2014.

Her promotion brings the number of women in cabinet to a record-high of seven,helping Mr Morrison combat criticism about the Liberal Party's treatment of women.

Of the 42 ministers sworn-in under Tony Abbott,26 of them - or more than 60 per cent - have either left politics,been dumped from the frontbench or are planning to leave Parliament in May.

Nearly 40 per cent of Malcolm Turnbull's post-2016 election ministry has since retired,resigned or are going to quit.

While the Prime Minister has played down Mr Pyne and Mr Ciobo's departures,their decisions will be seen as more evidence some Coalition MPs believe the government is on course for defeat at the hands of Opposition Leader Bill Shorten.

Former small business minister Craig Laundy is also preparing to announce his departure from politics,leaving his marginal Sydney seat of Reid vulnerable to Labor.

Senator Reynolds will be sworn in as defence industry minister at Government House on Saturday and Mr Morrison will pledge to make her the actual defence minister should the Coalition win the May election.

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"Linda has the talent,the experience,the knowledge and the determination to get the job done,"Mr Morrison said.

Government MPs believe Mr Ciobo has been angling for an overseas posting and that is behind his swift departure from cabinet.

Mr Morrison said keeping Mr Pyne in place despite his retirement was the"responsible course of action"to ensure continuity in an important strategic area.

Defence Minister Christopher Pyne in his Parliament House office.

Defence Minister Christopher Pyne in his Parliament House office.Credit:Alex Ellinghausen

Already reeling from the loss of Mr Turnbull in August,Mr Pyne's retirement is a fresh blow to the Liberal Party's moderate wing. Other prominent members preparing to leave Parliament include former foreign minister Julie Bishop,Jobs and Industrial Relations Minister Kelly O'Dwyer and Mr Laundy.

The Prime Minister has played down the impact of retirements,noting eight Labor MPs will not recontest the poll.

But Mr Shorten told The Sydney Morning Herald andThe Agethe government was"a farce".

"The Liberals and Nationals are looking after themselves and ignoring the Australian people,"he said.

"They are divided,unstable and more worried about themselves,their jobs and their donors than anything else."

Finance Minister Mathias Cormann is the only minister still in the same cabinet position after the Coalition's five years in office.

Mr Pyne,who has been in Parliament for 26 years,is one of the Liberal Party's leading moderate figures but has told supporters over recent days that he has been deeply unhappy in Canberra in the six months since Mr Turnbull's demise.

His mentor and friend Amanda Vanstone said the Defence Minister deserved to go out on his own terms.

"There are people who’ve stayed for 30 years in Parliament and they are figures of derision,"she said.

"If he has faced the reality of being a figure of derision by trying to hang around for 30 years and decided it’s time to get out,good luck to him. Look the tiger in the eye and deal with it. That’s Christopher."

Mr Pyne holds his Adelaide electorate of Sturt on a margin of 5.4 per cent,but his departure has given Labor a chance of snatching the seat.

Liberals believe the chief-of-staff to South Australian Premier Steven Marshall,James Steven,is the heir-apparent to Mr Pyne,but some local members want a woman and have floated Courtney Morcombe,Mr Marshall's policy director and the wife of federal Trade Minister Simon Birmingham.

Mr Ciobo,who supported Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton's botched bid to become prime minister,holds his Gold Coast seat of Moncrieff on a 14.6 per cent margin.

Steve Ciobo will leave cabinet straight away after his decision to not recontest the election.

Steve Ciobo will leave cabinet straight away after his decision to not recontest the election.Credit:Bloomberg

His departure gives Mr Dutton a chance to switch to a safer seat,but this option is considered unlikely.

Mr Pyne and Mr Ciobo are entitled to parliamentary pensions because they were elected before the scheme closed to new entrants in 2004. Preliminary calculation shows Mr Pyne would be entitled to an annual pension of about $220,500 a year and Mr Ciobo about $188,000.

Jobs and Industrial Relations Minister Kelly O'Dwyer,Human Services Minister Michael Keenan and Indigenous Affairs Minister Nigel Scullion have all announced their departures from politics at the election. The ministers will stay in their portfolios until the election is called.

Ms Reynolds said her background had prepared her for the new cabinet posting.

"I understand the challenges we confront regionally and globally. I know what it takes to ensure the men and women who serve our nation in the ADF have the best possible equipment – and wherever possible it is made here in Australia."

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