Circling back to an interview from earlier today,and Prime Minister Scott Morrison was on ABC radio where he was grilled about whether he should say sorry to the Australian public for some of the things his government has done over the past two years.
As you might recall,the PM fronted the National Press Club in Canberra yesterday and said he was perhaps too optimistic about this summer in public comments. And that he would do certain things differently if he’d have his time again.
The relevant exchange is below. It has been edited for length and clarity:
Sabra Lane:You’ve acknowledged many Australians are frustrated with the government,and that perhaps you raised hopes for a summer that were dashed. But you’re appear unwilling to say that you’re sorry[for your own actions]. Why is sorry the hardest word for you to say?
Morrison:Well,I remember in the vaccine rollout ... I said exactly that. I said that and then said,we’ve got to get on and fix it,and that’s what we did. And that’s one of the things I referred to yesterday when I said we didn’t get everything right. If we’d had Sir General Frewen’s operation there from the start,I think that would have made a big difference.
Lane:Former[Queensland] premier Peter Beattie made an art form of saying sorry,and voters seemed to really value that and reward him for it with re-election. Are you worried that voters might punish you for not saying sorry?
Morrison:I think I’ve been very honest with people. I was very honest with them yesterday where I thought the lessons were—
Lane:Sorry,usually when people do take responsibility for a problem,they say sorry.
Morrison:Well,what I think’s important is the experience that you get from working through those challenges. That is what helps people actually work through the next set of challenges. And that’s what I was explaining yesterday. Of course,nobody gets everything right,and I don’t think anybody expects everything to go perfectly for any government. And I think it’s an unrealistic expectation,as people would expect. And,so,look,I’m just getting on with the job. And,of course,as a government,we’re sorry for,you know,the impacts of the pandemic on everybody’s lives and livelihoods.