Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has made an emotional defence of his late mother after Pauline Hanson revived criticism of his childhood, describing the One Nation leader’s comments as “nasty” and “spiteful”.
The dispute follows remarks Hanson made earlier this year about Albanese’s repeated accounts of being raised by his single mother in Sydney public housing.
Appearing on The Karl Stefanovic Show, Hanson questioned why Albanese’s mother had remained in public housing for so many years.
“Housing commission houses should not be there for people to live in them for 30, 40 years, and he said his mother lived in the same one she was born in for 65 years,” Hanson said.
“Sorry, that is not on, to me. It should be limited time; you have been given a hand up, move it on to the next ones coming through.”
Questioned about Hanson’s remarks at a press conference at Kirribilli House on Sunday, Albanese strongly defended Maryanne Ellery, who raised him alone while managing significant health challenges.
“Firstly, she made comments about me complaining about growing up in public housing. Nothing could be further from the truth,” Albanese said.
“I’m proud of the community in which I grew up. I’m also proud of my mother.”
Anthony Albanese, pictured right, has condemned Pauline Hanson’s comments about his late mother.
The Prime Minister said his mother’s life was defined by bravery and sacrifice, not by privilege or entitlement.
“She was someone who made the courageous decision in 1963 to keep a child out of wedlock, who is now the Prime Minister of Australia,” he said.
“She was compassionate, not uncaring. She was generous, not mean. And she was kind, not nasty. She was a person of great character.”
Albanese recalled how his mother worked overnight cleaning offices in Sydney while raising him during the day, despite living with debilitating rheumatoid arthritis.
‘She had a tough life,’ he said.
‘But you know what? She also had great sayings. One of them was, ‘There’s always someone worse off than yourself’.’
He said his mother never complained about her situation and was highly respected in her community.
‘She never complained, she never denigrated anyone. She respected everyone,’ he said.
Hanson (pictured) said Albanese’s mother should not have lived in public housing for 65 years
‘I grew up in a community that looked after each other. It was the opposite of being elite. She was a battler.’
Albanese said he was stunned Hanson had chosen to target someone who died more than two decades ago.
‘For Pauline Hanson to attack someone and their character, who died in 2002 at age just 65, because she did have such a tough life with her health from an early age, is extraordinary,’ he said.
The Prime Minister used the clash to draw a broader contrast between the values he says his mother embodied and the tone of Hanson’s attack.
‘I said during the last campaign that kindness isn’t weakness,’ he said.
‘I’ll tell you what’s weakness: nastiness, nastiness and spitefulness.’
While Albanese said politicians should expect personal criticism, he argued family members should be off limits.
‘If Pauline Hanson wants to criticise me, then that’s fine,’ he said.
‘But my mother was way out of Pauline Hanson’s league. Way out of it.’
