Scott Morrison speaks for first time since election defeat
Former prime minister Scott Morrison has said he is “thankful” for his time in leadership and that he looks forward to becoming a “quiet Australian” again following Saturday’s federal election result.
In his first interview since Labor claimed victory, Mr Morrison told 2GB’s Ben Fordham that he was “of course” disappointed but respected the democratic process.
“You accept the result and you move on and you’re thankful for the opportunity that you’ve had to serve the country,” he said.
“When I was standing there on the Saturday night I was very mindful of what was happening in Ukraine, there is a country fighting for its very liberty and here we are a democratic nation changing a government through peaceful means.
“The party will come together, it’s not the first time the Liberal Party has lost an election.”
With Mr Morrison announcing he would step down as leader of the Liberal Party on election night and members of the party weighing in on its future direction, Mr Morrison spoke positively about what would happen under its new leader.
“The party will regroup and focus again under new leadership and I look forward to giving that new leadership every support and then going back to being a quiet Australian in the shire [of Sydney],” he said.
Mr Morrison is set to remain in politics but it is still unclear if he will take on, or be given, a shadow ministry.
“I’ve got no plans to go anywhere, I’m going back to the shire and re-establishing our life back there, getting the girls back into their routine - I just dropped them off at school this morning,” he said.
“I’m looking forward to being a dad again, it’s been a while since I’ve been able to spend as much time as I would’ve liked with the family.”
Mr Morrison wasn’t the only one to lose out in the election, with many of his colleagues, including former treasurer Josh Frydenberg, losing their seats.
“Obviously devastated that Josh won’t be there. Josh was a huge part of the party’s future,” Mr Morrison said.
He added that his faith and family were helping him keep a level head in the wake of the significant loss, and said he was leaving the job “not with regrets but with a great sense of gratitude”.
“You’re just very humbled by the opportunity you’ve had, you can dwell on defeat or you can dwell on the things that led you to go and do what you did,” Mr Morrison said.
“I leave not with regrets but with a sense of gratitude.
“Three years later the country’s moved in a different direction, that’s the nature of politics. I’ve never been one to get particularly flattered in victory or pessimistic in defeat.”
Though pleased that Labor was on track to form a majority government, Mr Morrison said the “teal independents” had made many election promises during the campaign and hoped they would be held to account by the next parliament.
“They were very vicious and very brutal campaigns, talking to my colleagues about them, they played things very hard on the ground,” he said.
“Anyway, politics can be a tough and brutal business.”
When asked whether he believed the Coalition needed to ensure it didn’t move further to the right after losing some key moderates, the former PM refused to comment.
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