Joe Hockey's failure to detail the savings the opposition would make to return the national budget to surplus shows the federal Liberals are out of control, Treasurer Wayne Swan says.
The coalition has promised budget savings of $46 billion if it wins power at the next federal election, with opposition leader Tony Abbott saying shadow treasurer Mr Hockey would outline planned spending cuts in his 30-minute budget response speech to the National Press Club on Wednesday.
But during his address Mr Hockey indicated that finance spokesman Andrew Robb would detail the savings - and only after the speech was over.
Abbott's comments haunt him
"Mr Abbott said earlier in the week that you could only believe what he ever put in writing and today nothing was supplied in writing by Mr Hockey," Mr Swan told reporters after addressing the NSW Business Chamber in Sydney.
"What this demonstrates is just what a big risk the Liberal party is to our economy."
Mr Swan said the normal convention was for full details of proposed savings to be detailed in the opposition leader's budget reply, but that Mr Abbott had passed the issue to Mr Hockey.
"Mr Hockey has not provided a path back to surplus in three years, Mr Hockey has not provided the savings that are required.
Libs 'out of control'
"So I think what you are seeing is a Liberal party that is simply out of control.
"They've had days to get their act together. Mr Abbott said they'd do with it with Mr Hockey today. Mr Hockey today has hand passed it to Mr Robb.
"They have simply become a joke."
Earlier, Mr Swan said Australia will be one of the biggest winners, if not the biggest, as the global economy climbs out of recession and gravitates toward Asia.
