The wives of ministers Josh Frydenberg and Mathias Cormann might have “double-dipped” on paid parental leave and not told their partners, treasurer Joe Hockey said.
The government wants to stop parents – predominantly mothers – from accessing both their employers’ and the federal scheme. It has been criticised for accusing parents who “double-dip” of engaging in rorts.
Shortly after the budget was announced last week, finance minister Mathias Cormann and assistant treasurer Josh Frydenberg admitted that they had benefited from accessing two forms of entitlements, neutralising the government’s argument that doing so amounted to a rort.
The treasurer was pressed by conservative broadcaster Ray Hadley on Monday morning over criticism of double-dipping parents.
Hockey would not be drawn on whether Cormann and Frydenberg had alerted their colleagues to the fact that their wives had used both concurrent schemes.
“I can’t recall,” Hockey said.
Hadley continued by asking if it would have been better for the government if Frydenberg and Cormann had alerted their colleagues so that Hockey and social services minister Scott Morrison “didn’t look like dills” when pursuing the rorters argument with the public.
“You were made to look silly; Scott Morrison was made to look sillier,” Hadley argued.
Hockey answered: “Their wives might have done it and they didn’t know.”
The comments immediately drew jeers from social media users.
“Maybe in their worlds $11k [the government PPL limit] is beer money, just not worth mentioning,” one said.
@AgnessMack @mackaysuzie @shalailah Maybe in their worlds $11k is beer money, just not worth mentioning.
— Michael McCarthy (@mccartm1) May 18, 2015
Another accused the government ministers of “blaming their wives now” that the policy had come unstuck.
@shalailah @GrogsGamut really blaming the wives now?
— Susan Mackay (@mackaysuzie) May 17, 2015
Others pointed out that Frydenberg had last year mentioned how much bureaucracy was involved when his wife Amie, a workplace relations lawyer at a top Victorian firm, had applied for the government PPL scheme, indicating he had some engagement in the process.
Last week, Hockey admitted to Alan Jones that his wife “doesn’t share” her money with him.
“I presume they share their money, don’t they?” Jones asked the treasurer on wealthy couples accessing childcare.
He replied: “Well, not always.”
“They’re married. They share their dough. Come on, Joe,” Jones said.
“My wife doesn’t share it with me,” Hockey replied.
