Australian Immigration Minister Peter Dutton has apologised to a journalist after calling her a mad witch in a text message and accidentally sending it to her.
Samantha Maiden, a political editor for News Corp media, said on Monday that Dutton had “apologised and said that he had sent the text to the wrong person”.
Maiden had written a column critical of Dutton’s colleague Jamie Briggs, an ex-minister who resigned last week over his behaviour with a young diplomat in a Hong Kong bar.
“I was more than happy to accept Peter Dutton’s apology,” she told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.
“As soon as he sent me that text saying ‘Mate, she’s a bit of a mad witch’ I sent him a text saying ‘Mate, you’ve sent the text to the mad witch’.”
The text message, in which Dutton used an expletive and called Maiden a mad witch, was reportedly intended for Briggs, local media said.
“Sam and I have exchanged some robust language over the years, so we had a laugh after this and I apologised to her straight away which she took in good faith,” Dutton said in a statement on Monday, according to the ABC.
“I’m expecting a tough time in her next column.”
DPA
Source: Media24
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