Speaker Bronwyn Bishop apologises for her error of judgement but says she will not resign

After facing three weeks of continued criticisms, Speaker Bronwyn Bishop has finally tendered her apology to the Australian people for her error of judgement in using taxpayer money to fund her expensive travels but said she will not resign from her role as a Speaker under the mounting pressure from the Opposition.

The ABC news reported she said she is sorry for “letting the people down” and would work harder to prove herself worthy of her role while maintaining that the arrangements for her travels were done within the ambit of entitlement rules. "I am so apologetic to the Australian people for letting them down and I will be working very hard to make sure things are right," Ms. Bishop told reporters.

In an interview by the conservative host Alan Jones, who has also been a close ally of her for a long time, on Sydney Radio 2GB, she admitted that there is no excuse for what has been done, and that she will be repaying all the expenses related to weddings, which “do not look right” even though they are technically in the rules.

According to the Sydney Morning Herald, the apology is in sharp contrast with the defiant statement she made at a media conference earlier in the month. But on Thursday, she confessed that it was a mistake on her part to not have apologised earlier. "Yes it was, I should have said it then, I wish I had," she said.

Bishop has been under scrutiny for about three weeks since the scandal on spending AU$5000 to charter a helicopter for commuting from Melbourne to Geelong broke, leaving Bishop red faced amidst the stark criticism against her. Even though she agreed to reimburse the entire amount, a former Labor MP Jennie George once again criticised her for spending AU$600 of taxpayer money for travelling to Albury, which also included attending former Liberal MP Sophie Mirabella’s wedding.

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