Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has not personally apologised for his highly controversial comments about the Japanese PM’s “melons”.
Mr Albanese has faced heavy criticism over his appearance on the Bush Deep podcast, where he talked about his sex life, made crude jokes and commented on senators’ penises.
The Prime Minister also joked about Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s “melons”, said the NRL was an “aphrodisiac” and suggested he would “shag” Kylie Minogue.
While Mr Albanese issued an apology statement through the Prime Minister’s Office, he has not personally said sorry for the joke about Ms Takaichi despite holding multiple press conferences.
He faced the media on Wednesday where he spoke about electric trucks, the telecommunications outage and China’s missile test.
He did not address the ongoing controversy surrounding his podcast appearance, but was also not asked about the scandal by journalists.
“I apologise unequivocally for the comments,” Mr Albanese said in a statement issued by the Prime Minister’s Office on Monday.
Liberal Senator Jane Hume told Sky News on Wednesday that Mr Albanese should make an in-person public apology rather than a written one.
“More than an apology, I think, is needed here issued from the Prime Minister’s office… you know, it’s wholly inadequate,” she said.
“The comments themselves were awful. They were sexist, they were creepy. What really gets up my nose is the fact that my female Labor colleagues are nowhere to be seen.
“Nothing from Penny Wong about this weird, creepy, pervy stuff that’s come out from her own leader’s mouth.
“Nobody’s saying a word. Where’s Clare O’Neil? Where’s Tanya Plibersek? Where’s Katy Gallagher, the Minister for Women?”
Ms Gallagher has gone on holidays, but Acting Minister for Women Anne Aly declined to comment on Mr Albanese’s scandal when contacted by Sky News.
Liberal Senator Jacinta Nampijinpa Price earlier described Mr Albanese’s language as “extremely misogynistic” on Tuesday and said he needed to deliver a formal apology.
Mr Albanese previously apologised for suggesting he wanted to shag popstar Kylie Minogue, but issued the statement through the Prime Minister’s Office.
He had not taken any questions for several days about his podcast appearance as he was on a diplomatic mission in Vanuatu and the Solomon Islands.
“What a shameful Prime Minister we have with his recent comments that he made on a podcast which were extremely misogynistic,” Ms Price said on Tuesday.
“Not just about an iconic Australian pop singer such as Kylie Minogue, but also in relation to the Japanese Prime Minister.
“This Prime Minister should stand before the Australian people, stand before women right around our country and apologise unreservedly himself.
“Not through a statement, but for the sake of every single woman in this country and girl child in this country that his behaviour is unacceptable.”
Ms Price said the PM’s comments were “disgusting” and “misogynistic”, asking what kind of message it sent young males around the country.
“What sort of message is he telling our young men that it’s okay to treat women and objectify them in this manner. It is highly inappropriate,” she said.
Opposition Leader Angus Taylor also accused Mr Albanese of hypocrisy, after he recently said it was unacceptable to objectify women.
“The hypocrisy of his comments on that podcast is extraordinary,” Mr Taylor told reporters on Tuesday.
The criticism comes after Mr Albanese said it was “completely unacceptable to demean, objectify, belittle or offend women” just weeks ago.
Those comments were made about the Victorian “Ditch the Witch” billboard campaign against Victorian Labor Premier Jacinta Allan.
“No matter who you support in politics, it is completely unacceptable to demean, objectify, belittle or offend women,” Mr Albanese said.
Ms Allan declined to condemn Mr Albanese’s crude comments on Monday, saying they were made “in a more light-hearted manner”.
“I have not heard the interview. I understand this is something that was in a more light-hearted manner,” she said.
“But I’ll leave the rest of the commentary on this matter to the Prime Minister. My understanding is this is a more light-hearted forum, and I’ll leave that matter there.”
Acting Minister for Women Anne Aly declined to comment on the matter when approached by Sky News.