Anthony Albanese has delivered a passionate defence of his mother and a blistering rebuke to Pauline Hanson after the One Nation leader described as “pathetic” how often the Prime Minister speaks about his upbringing.

Condoning the comments as nasty, weak and spiteful, Mr Albanese on Sunday reiterated he was proud of his “houso” upbringing and defiantly described his mother as being “way out of Pauline Hanson’s league”.

“She was compassionate, not uncaring,” the Prime Minister said of Maryanne, who died in 2002 aged 65 after raising the now-Prime Minister in public housing.

“She was generous. And she was kind, not nasty. She was a person of great character.

“She had a tough life, but you know what?

“She used to also have great sayings. One of them was: ‘There’s always someone worse off than yourself’.

“I said during the last campaign, kindness isn’t weakness.

“I’ll tell you what’s weakness, nastiness. Nastiness.

“And spitefulness.

“For Pauline Hanson, to attack someone and their character ... someone who died in 2002, some 24 years ago, at age just 65, because she did have such a tough life with her health from an early age.

“And I am stunned at these comments but I’ll make this point.

“If Pauline Hanson wants to criticise me then that’s fine. But my mother was way out of Pauline Hanson’s league, way out of it.”