Prime Minister Tony Abbott has stuck by his immigration minister, praising him for his work on the refugee crisis, as a backlash grows against a joke made about nations threatened by climate change.
Peter Dutton was recorded on Friday joking about the plight of Pacific island nations facing rising seas from climate change, quipping that a late-starting meeting was running to "Cape York time".
Mr Abbott replied: "We had a bit of that up in Port Moresby", with Mr Dutton replying: "Time doesn't mean anything when you're about to have water lapping at your door."
Mr Dutton has been heavily criticised over the comments.
The president of Kiribati has called the joke "vulgar" and "quite unbecoming of leadership", while Cape York traditional owner Gerhardt Pearson labelled Mr Dutton's views "soft bigotry" that harked back to the mission days of the past century.
Labor has also used the gaffe to have a crack at Mr Dutton, with Opposition Leader Bill Shorten slamming the "astounding" remark.
"He's not some bloke in the outer at the footy," Mr Shorten said.
"We depend upon his skills to present Australia in the right light.
"Mr Abbott now has to make a choice - are those sort of views the views you want in cabinet ministers in this country, or ... does he choose the Australian people?"
Despite the criticism, Mr Abbott said Mr Dutton should be remembered for something else he did this week.
"He masterminded the plan to bring 12,000 needy people to this country," Mr Abbott said in Canberra.
Later on Saturday in Perth, where he was campaigning ahead of the Canning by-election next Saturday, Mr Abbott was again questioned about what he has called a "lame joke."
He reiterated his comments about Mr Dutton's work involving the refugees and, when asked if he thought it was funny, said "it is not about me".
"We made a decision that reflects Australia at its best and then we have a subsequent Twitter storm which, if I may say so, reflects Australia at its worst," he told reporters.
Mr Dutton has declined to comment further on the conversation, picked up on a boom mike that was eventually spotted by Social Services Minister Scott Morrison.
