Scott Morrison laughs off reports he’s lining up for Joe Hockey’s job as he spruiks budget

IN A testy interview this morning, Lisa Wilkinson kept pressing the man who is stealing all of Joe Hockey’s thunder. His answers didn’t satisfy her.

SCOTT Morrison has denied plans to overshadow Joe Hockey and take his job amid reports of a behind-the-scenes strategy to elevate him to treasurer.

The Social Services Minister this morning copped a grilling from Today show host Lisa Wilkinson, who pressed him over being “the star of the party” and having prime ministerial ambitions.

Mr Morrison has been appointed the unofficial salesman of the government’s second budget, yesterday announcing $3.5 billion in childcare reforms to encourage mums back into the workforce in a joint press conference with the Prime Minister. Notably excluded was Mr Hockey, the man who’s supposed to be in charge of the Budget.

The Prime Minister Tony Abbott and Scott Morrison announce one of their key budget measures ... usually the job of the treasure. Pic: Stephen Cooper

Mr Morrison defended the “team decision” to have him announce the measures instead of Mr Hockey, brushing off Ms Wilkinson’s suggestion he was “cutting the Treasurer’s grass” and saying he was doing the public a favour.

“These are areas within my specific portfolio and that’s why I’ve been announcing them” he said.

“This has been part of a team decision of how we can assure that people have appropriate time to digest the budget.

“The hyperventilating over this issue is, I think, getting a little bit ridiculous.”

The interview got quite testy.

Ms Wilkinson continued to push Mr Morrison, asking whether he has any ambitions to lead his party.

“Frankly, you are seen as the rising star of the Liberal Party,” she said. “Your frontbench colleague Christopher Pyne has even called you prime ministerial material. Do you want to be prime minister one day?”

“The problem with all this is that it’s distracting from the main message of the budget,” Mr Morrison said.

“Joe Hockey’s doing his part in the team, I’m doing my part in the team, the Prime Minister’s doing his part in the team.”

That answer didn’t satisfy Ms Wilkinson, who pressed further.

“Do you rule out or in having your eye, one day, on the prime ministership?” she asked.

“I will seek to do as much as I can in politics to the best of my ability, wherever that takes me,” he replied.

Scott Morrison has been visiting learning centres and giving interviews left right and centre as Joe Hockey waits for his time in the spotlight tomorrow night.

That exchange followed a fiery start to the interview, as Ms Wilkinson probed more broadly at the government’s plans for childcare in the Budget.

“Tell me, what do you have against stay-at-home mums?” she said. “This is all designed to push them out the door to get jobs. Tell me, where are those jobs going to come from, and if they do get jobs, where are the new childcare places going to come from?”

“All mums work hard. Every single mum works hard. And I think everyone acknowledges that,” Mr Morrison said.

“The childcare subsidy is there so that mothers in paid employment go to work. That’s why we do it.”

“So many families, two-thirds of families are double income families now.”

Even Joe Hockey doesn’t seem to be buying the line its his and the PM’s budget.

Though the Prime Minister has denied discussions to elevate the man he’s allowed to preview the budget to a job where he’d actually be in charge of it, he continues to wheel out Mr Morrison to sell its measures.

The Australian today reports Mr Morrison has had a discussion with Mr Abbott last week about being given the Treasury portfolio if his components of the budget are well received, and if he can push them through the Senate.

The report follows a similar line from columnist Niki Savva last week, who said Mr Hockey was told if the budget went down badly he would have to go. Mr Abbott denied the report.

Mr Morrison has been dubbed the government’s “everywhere man” and has been giving about seven interviews to Mr Hockey’s one, Wilkinson noted this morning. As Mr Everywhere yesterday announced his childcare package, the Treasurer was left to defend his position in a disastrous TV interview.

Mr Hockey refused to reveal details about he budget he insisted he was still in control of, and denied he was being overshadows by Mr Morrison.

“There are people on the sidelines who like to heckle when someone is kicking for goal to try and distract the kicker,” he told veteran reporter Laurie Oakes.

“But this kicker is going to put it through the posts.”

Just a day out from the budget announcement, Mr Hockey looks to be left with little to reveal when he finally gets his time in the spotlight, but he’ll still be held to account for its success.

Mr Morrison continues to appear the star of selling the new budget, having announced childcare payments and family benefits reform.

Following today’s report in The Australian, it’s a policy that could see Mr Morrison rise to take the Treasury, but the Nationals appear to be already blocking such a move protesting cuts to single income families’ benefits that come as a cost in implementing the new package.

Speaking on Nine this morning, Mr Morrison denied his budget measures discriminated against single mums.

Changes to paid parental leave, which will prevent new parents accessing the Commonwealth scheme if their employer offers more generous benefits, is another key part of the budget’s families package, which Mr Morrison can take credit for if successful.

That leaves Mr Hockey to announce the finer details of his small business package, another key component.

Joe Hockey has been working hard on the budget from behind his desk as Mr Morrison spruiks it. Pic: Gary Ramage.

Mr Hockey has promised there will be no new taxes in the budget, even though he is expected to deliver huge deficits in the next couple of years at least.

Both Mr Hockey and Finance Minister Mathias Cormann have reiterated that the budget will show a credible path back to surplus, although neither is prepared to put a date on when that might happen.

The government has already set itself up for another battle with the Senate, by declaring it wants savings measures — including cuts to the family benefits scheme — to be passed to fund the childcare reform package.

— With AAP