Anthony Albanese accuses Peter Dutton of having not 'a hint of empathy' after robodebt royal commission

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has slammed Opposition Leader Peter Dutton for accusing the government of trying to gain political advantage from the scathing findings of the robodebt royal commission.

Dutton, speaking after a Liberal National Party conference on Saturday, claimed Albanese and Government Services Minister Bill Shorten had politicised the report into the debt recovery scheme created, run and then abolished by the former Coalition government.

"I caution the glee of the prime minister and Bill Shorten at the moment. They've sought to politicise this issue from day one," Dutton said.

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Albanese was quick to refute the opposition leader's claims.

"I would have thought, given that Peter Dutton sat in the cabinet for all of that time ... and defended this system, that the royal commission could have seen some recognition from Peter Dutton that this isn't about politics, it's about people," the prime minster said on Saturday afternoon.

"There could have been a hint of empathy from Peter Dutton, but there was none."

The royal commission report was handed down on Friday with referrals for civil and criminal prosecution and 57 recommendations.

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Shorten on Saturday said the report was vindication for the victims who suffered the inexplicable debts and for the families of those who took their lives as a result.

Dutton said Shorten was a "political animal" who had "used every opportunity to milk out whatever political advantage there is to the Labor party out of this issue".

"Bill Shorten's politicisation of this process has been documented. He has been pulled up by the speaker on a number of occasions as he has gone close to the line or crossed the line," he said.

"He's seen political advantage in this situation, there's no question about that."

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Dutton also claimed Albanese had done the same.

He defended the actions of the former government in relation to the robodebt scheme despite it being created and continued over four and a half years during the Coalition's tenure.

"When the problems were brought to the attention of the government at the time, the program was stopped," he said.

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Speaking earlier on Saturday, Shorten said the report's findings would lead any "self-respecting politician" to be "humiliated".

"This is their political tombstone, this is what is going to be etched on it, that a group of them abused their power," he said.

Dutton apologised to the victims of the robodebt scheme.

"I'm sorry to those people who have been adversely affected. I truly am," he said.

"In relation to those cases we saw before the royal commission and other cases in the media.

"The commission was an important process.

"They've made recommendations we'll consider those."

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On the topic of Scott Morrison and the findings of the report that he "misled" the cabinet, which the former prime minister denies, Dutton confirmed he would continue to support sitting members of his party.

"Mr Morrison has provided a response, refuting the allegations made, if there's a legal process that follows, I don't know," he said.

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