Education Minister Christopher Pyne has tried to hose down praise of his colleague Julie Bishop as a potential Liberal Party leader but accidentally bungled his defence of Prime Minister Tony Abbott in the process.

Mr Pyne was asked about Fairfax Media's report of Liberal MP Teresa Gambaro privately spruiking Ms Bishop as a future prime minister, during his regular appearance on the Nine network's Today Show on Friday.

He declined to endorse Ms Bishop as a future leader but did praise her performance in her current role as Foreign Affairs Minister.

"I think she is a great role model to women, I think she's a great role model for everyone, not just women by the way, she's a great Foreign Minister but we have a fantastic Prime Minister," Mr Pyne said.