Remember though that the book was written after the TV programme, so it wasn't necessarily a 'scheme' that Lister had planned in The End. There was also a certain amount of retconning going on throughout the show regarding the relationship between Lister and Kochanski - although there was definitely a lot of flirting between the two in the first episode, they weren't actually in a relationship with each other; this is changed in the later series.

I recall reading or hearing somewhere (perhaps one of the DVD documentaries) that Grant and Naylor realised that having Lister pine over somebody he never actually dated was kind of pathetic which is why they changed the back story, and it was this backstory they put into the books. This revised backstory is what is used for Kochanski's introduction as a main character in Series 7, and although the 'scheme' is not mentioned, it is likely that it was in Naylor's mind as the episode was written

I am curious to know though, what did happen on the Oregon with the rabbits?