Jenny Morrison says she was a little bit disappointed with the behaviour of former Australian of the Year Grace Tame during an event at The Lodge last month, saying she wants her own daughters to grow up to be "fierce and strong" but to also "be polite and have manners".
The prime minister's wife addressed the exchange in an interview with the Nine Network, which aired on Sunday night.
During the encounter, for the finalists of this year's Australian of the Year awards in Canberra.
"I just wish the focus had been on all the incredible people coming in. I just found it a little bit disappointing because we were welcoming her in our home," Ms Morrison said in the interview.
While Mr Morrison has previously brushed off the encounter, his wife said that she wanted her own daughters to be fierce, independent and respectful.
"I want my daughters to grow up to be fierce, strong, independent, amazing people. And I think they can still do that and show kindness to other people and be polite and have manners," she said.
Ms Tame is a survivor of child sexual abuse and says she advocates for all its survivors, including men. She has been a vocal critic of the government's handling of women's safety issues.
In a tweet following the meeting, Ms Tame said the "survival of abuse culture is dependent on submissive smiles and self-defeating surrenders. It is dependent on hyprocrisy."
"My past is only relevant to the extent that I have seen - in fact I have worn - the consequences of civility for the sake of civility," she said earlier this month.
"What I did wasn’t an act of martyrdom in the gender culture war. It’s true that many women are sick of being told to smile, often by men, for the benefit of men. But it’s not just women who are conditioned to smile and conform to the visibly rotting status-quo. It’s all of us."
Speaking on Monday, Deputy Prime Minister Barnaby Joyce said he had seen the clip from the interview and that he agreed with Ms Morrison's comments.
"Jenny can say it, but we can't," he told Sunrise. "But I agree with Jenny, I have to say. I just think, if you're going to see the prime minister, you respect the office, if nothing else.
"You can still have your strong political views, you're absolutely entitled to them and absolutely entitled to voice them. But I don't think people roll with the theatrics, I know they don't - because when you talk to people, they didn't like that."
Labor MP Joel Fitzgibbon said it was expected that Ms Morrison would defend her husband, and her family.
"She'll receive no criticism from me," he said, instead accusing the prime minister of "rolling the family out" in an "act of desperation" that "does reflect his current political situation".
In a short post on social media addressing Ms Morrison, former Liberal MP Julia Banks said: "I know Grace Tame and Brittany Higgins. I know and have worked with Scott [Morrison]. I know a lot of people who work[ed] with him.
"To Jenny (who I've met briefly) - I say 'with manners and being polite'. Everyone I know is disappointed in him."
Mr Morrison's personal standing has taken a hit in recent months, and Labor has repeatedly raised questions about his honesty and integrity. A series of polls shows the governing Liberal-led coalition is trailing Labor ahead of the election due by late May.
"He's all about problem-solving so that can come across sometimes as serious, uncaring or lacking empathy," Ms Morrison said in the Nine interview.
"But it isn't that at all - it's seriously focused and task-orientated."
Asked about his own perceived lack of empathy in response to the human cost of the COVID-19 pandemic, the prime minister said he bleeds "like everybody else".
"I do it privately, and I do it quietly and I do it in the arms of my wife and family," Mr Morrison said.
It has been a bruising period for the government which last week opted not to proceed with debate on the religious discrimination bill in the Senate due to a lack of support, making it unlikely the Liberals can fulfil an election promise to enact such laws.
Winning support from female voters will also be crucial to Mr Morrison's re-election ambitions. A Newspoll published online by The Australian on Sunday shows the Liberal-led coalition's primary vote remains on a post-election record low of 34 per cent.
The "underdog" status claimed by Mr Morrison ahead of the 2022 election is not a new situation for the 53-year-old.
Ahead of the 2019 election, Mr Morrison's government was behind in the polls after a messy leadership change. He promptly secured an election victory which he described as a "miracle".
He said in the interview that doubters had been wrong before and "of course" he could win again.
With SBS News.
