Prime Minister Scott Morrison has broken his silence on how he felt about Grace Tame's scowl when the pair met in Canberra earlier this week.
The 2021 Australian of the Year went viral around the country when video footage showed her greet Australia's leader and his wife before standing emotionless for a photo.
Grace hasn't shied away from criticising the government during her tenure and she made her feelings very clear when she met the PM at The Lodge on January 25.
While many praised her for not playing nice with a leader she didn't agree with, she was criticised by others who said she was being disrespectful.
Scott Morrison has now spoken about the whole fiasco and cleared up how he felt when he saw the photos.
"I've seen all of that. Anyone comes to our home, when we invite somebody, we greet them with a smile, and they're always welcome,'' Mr Morrison said on 4BC radio station.
Ms Tame and her fiancé were invited to Canberra to ceremonially hand over her title to the 2022 recipient and meet the other candidates for other awards and honours.
The Prime Minister said it was probably a little distasteful for her to indirectly pull all the focus from a nice event.
"That day was actually about all the finalists coming to celebrate,'' he said. "And the previous Australians of the Year were there. Jenny and I were there and that day was all about them.
"All I'm saying is we were there that day to celebrate those who've done an incredible job for our country. And Jenny and I wanted to welcome them into our home and wish them all the best.
"Look, Grace is a passionate person who's raised important issues. She's had a terrible life, terrible things happened to her.
"It's just awful. And I know a lot of Australians, me included, and I support her efforts to ensure that these issues can be raised and addressed.
"Our government has done more than any other government on this issue. And that is in part because of the strong focus that has been brought to these issues.
"So I thank her for her time as Australian of the Year and as I say, when people come to our house, Jenny and I always greet them with a smile."
Topics: Australia
Stewart Perrie