Prime Minister Scott Morrison has apologised over a remark made during the first leaders’ debate that he was “blessed” to have children who did not have disabilities.
Mr Morrison made the comment when the mother of a four-year-old boy with autism asked him about the future of the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS).
The statement made on Wednesday night has drawn backlash from disability advocates, Labor politicians and former Australian of the Year Grace Tame.
2022 Australian of the Year Dylan Alcott has also taken to social media to address the remark, calling for people with disability to be treated equally.
Mr Morrison said he had spoken with Mr Alcott about his comment and accepted that it has caused “offence to people”.
“I would hope that people would accept that at face value and deeply apologise for any offence that it caused.,” he told reporters in Brisbane.
“I think people would also appreciate that I would have had no such intention of suggesting that anything other than every child is a blessing.”
Mr Morrison had earlier accused his political opponents of seeking to "twist" his words over the comment during a radio interview with 2GB.
"To take something that was meant in a good spirit and just use it for political purposes in the middle of a campaign," he said.
During the debate, Catherine whose four-year old son has autism asked the prime minister about the government’s management of the National Disability Insurance Scheme.
“I have a four-year-old son. We are grateful to receive funds through the NDIS,” she said.
"But I've heard many stories of people having their funds cut recently under the current government, including our own.
"I've been told to give my son the best future, I should vote Labor.
"Can you please tell me what the future of the NDIS looks like under your government?"
Mr Morrison had responded: "Jenny and I have been blessed, we have two children who haven’t had to go through that.
"And so for parents with children who are disabled, I can only try and understand your aspirations for those children."
Mr Alcott addressed the comments on social media on Thursday morning.
"Woke up this morning feeling very blessed to be disabled - I reckon my parents are pretty happy about it too," he tweeted.
"Feeling sorry for us and our families doesn't help. Treating us equally, and giving us the choice and control over our own lives does."
It came after Ms Tame - who has autism - criticised Mr Morrison for his comments, implying that he was "fake".
People with Disability Australia president Samantha Conner - who lives with muscular dystrophy - also responded with disappointment to the comment.
"As a person with a disability and parents of children with disability it's really disappointing to hear us portrayed in those same titles," she told SBS News.
"Nobody needs to hear that they're blessed because they don't have children like us."
She also said she believed that causing harm wasn't the "intent" of the prime minister, but that his comment was not "appropriate".
"What we need is to hear a strong commitment from the government that they are going to make sure that we're safe and supported,” she said.
Opposition leader Anthony Albanese refrained from criticising the prime minister when asked about the remark, instead responding: "I think every child is a blessing for parents."
But Labor's spokesperson for the NDIS Bill Shorten has criticised Mr Morrison's handling of the NDIS on Twitter, and said "every child is a blessing".
He also called for Mr Morrison to apologise to people with disability and their families for his remarks.
Labor Senator Katy Gallagher said she was "shocked" by Mr Morrison's comments while appearing on the Seven Network's Sunrise program, saying that she was "blessed to have a child with autism".
"I was really upset by that comment," Senator Gallagher said.
"I found it really offending and quite shocking and it's something that people who have a disability — children with autism — it's the kind of response they get all the time, that people are blessed not to have what they have when in actual fact, every child is a blessing."
But Liberal Senator Hollie Hughes, who has a son with autism has defended the prime minister's comments.
"To be honest, I did not think of anything of them at all. I certainly didn't take anything negative away from it," she told the ABC.
Senator Hughes says the anger has been misplaced by people who are against Mr Morrison.
"I know there were days, very early on when my son was younger, that were really, really hard. I didn't feel particularly blessed.
