Scott Morrison jumps to defence of Israel Folau

The Federal Treasurer has backed Israel Folau in his right to defend his faith, describing him as a “good man”.

Israel Folau pictured at Waratahs training. Picture: Toby Zerna

Scott Morrison has backed Wallabies star Israel Folau’s “strong character,” just two weeks after the rugby player courted controversy for his views on homosexuality.

In an interview with News Corp’s Miranda Devine on Wednesday, the treasurer, who is a practising Christian, described Folau as a “good man”.

When asked about the controversial Instagram comment, where the star player wrote

gays were headed for “hell” unless they repented their sins and turned to God, Mr Morrison said: “It clearly means a lot to Izzy and good for him for standing up for his faith”.

The treasurer, who abstained from the same-sex marriage vote in December, told Devine he believed Folau “wouldn’t have wanted to intend to have offended or hurt anyone because that’s very much against the faith that he feels so passionately about.”

“I think he’s shown a lot of strength of character in just standing up for what he believes in and I think that’s what this country is all about.”

Mr Morrison, a lifelong fan of NRL side Cronulla, also quipped Folau was welcome to join his beloved club if he wanted to make the switch back to rugby league.

The treasurer’s comments come a day after Rugby Australia decided not to sanction Folau over the social media post, which saw rugby sponsor Qantas threaten to withdraw its support for the game.