Scott Morrison has backed the embattled aged care minister despite saying he can “understand the criticism” of Richard Colbeck, who attended the Ashes cricket match in Hobart on the same day he failed to front a parliamentary inquiry into the Covid crisis.
The finance minister, Simon Birmingham, also defended Colbeck on Friday, saying people could “walk and chew gum at the same time”. He noted the aged care minister – who is also the sport minister – had held Covid meetings earlier in the day before attending the Test match a fortnight ago.
The prime minister told 4BC radio: “During the course of that week, I’m aware he [Colbeck] was doing not just issues that related to his sport minister [role] but he was having the regular contacts with the aged care sector, with the AHPPC [pandemic committee], all those things. Ministers have many responsibilities. I can understand the criticism.”
Colbeck declined to attend the Senate Covid-19 committee on 14 January. He cited the need not to divert health department officials from their “urgent and critical” work but it was revealed this week he attended three days of the Hobart Test from Friday 14 January to Sunday 16 January.
A spokesperson for Colbeck said the suggestion he had “put his sporting commitments ahead of the health and wellbeing of senior Australians … [was] completely misguided” because he had performed other Covid-related duties on the Friday and the Test was a day-nighter.
His office said the minister had, on 14 January, met the head of the Covid vaccine rollout, Lt Gen John Frewen, the aged care quality and safety commissioner, the acting secretary of the health department and the deputy chief medical officer.
Morrison, in his first public comments on the scandal since it broke, said on Friday that Colbeck had appeared before the committee on “countless occasions”. The 4BC host, Neil Breen, suggested Colbeck’s actions nevertheless did not pass the “pub test”.
“I think Richard has taken that on board – I have no doubt,” the prime minister replied.
“But I can tell you, I mean, over the course of this pandemic, I know Richard very well, and there have been a few knockers of him, but I know what he does each and every day for the welfare of people living in our residential aged care facilities. He’ll take that criticism on the chin and he’ll get back to work.
Sign up to receive an email with the top stories from Guardian Australia every morning
Birmingham also defended the under-fire minister, saying he’d had discussions with Colbeck and has been “reassured that as aged care minister, he was receiving all of the daily briefings in relation to the Covid management in the aged care sector; that he was engaged in the meetings that he should be”.
“He’s also the minister for sport and the Ashes Test being held in his home state of Tasmania was a significant thing for Tasmania too,” Birmingham said.
“But I’ve been reassured that he certainly wasn’t missing a beat in terms of engaging as he should be in the aged care issues every single day.”
Birmingham praised Colbeck as “doing a strong job” as aged care minister. Asked if Colbeck’s appearance at the Test was a good look, Birmingham responded: “It’s possible for many people to be able to walk and chew gum at the same time.”
“This was a day-night Test. I know that he, as I said, has reassured me, as he said publicly, that he was engaged in all of the different aged care meetings and leadership that he should be,” he said.
Morrison on Friday was also asked about the frosty interaction between him and outgoing Australian of the Year Grace Tame on Tuesday.
“I’ve seen all that. When anyone comes to our home, when Jenny and I, we invite someone to our home, we greet them with a smile and they’re always welcome,” the prime minister said.
Morrison praised Tame – an advocate for survivors of sexual abuse – as “a passionate person who’s raised important issues”, adding “a lot of Australians, me included, support her efforts to ensure that these issues can be raised and addressed”.
“I thank her for her time as Australian of the Year,” he said.
Morrison had declined to answer media questions about the incident on Wednesday, saying he wanted to focus on “positivity” on Australia Day.
Labor, independent senators Jacqui Lambie and Rex Patrick, and officials in the aged care sector have been scathing in their criticism of Colbeck’s decision to attend the cricket. According to Aged Care Matters, on 14 January there were 1,107 aged care centres with outbreaks, rising to 1,198 on 21 January.
Colbeck has previously come under heavy criticism for a series of public errors, including not knowing how many aged care workers have been vaccinated and not knowing the number of people who have died in aged care.