Government minister Alex Hawke has enthusiastically endorsed sentiments aired by Liberal candidate Gladys Liu about LGBTI issues despite Ms Liu distancing herself from the remarks after they attracted controversy.

In a recording published last week, Ms Liu is heard saying that members of the Chinese-Australian community felt the LGBTI rights agenda — including the Safe Schools anti-bullying initiative — was "ridiculous rubbish", abnormal and destructive.

Special Minister of State Alex Hawke. Credit:Alex Ellinghausen

Facing criticism for the comments, which were made in 2016, Ms Liu quickly declared she had been misrepresented and they were not her personal views. "I firmly support equality across our community," she said.

Defending the party's candidate for the Victorian seat of Chisholm, Prime Minister Scott Morrison said Ms Liu was not homophobic and "was simply saying that these were the views of that community".