Tom Elliott says he can sympathise with Opposition Leader Peter Dutton after a photo of his son Tom holding a bag of white powder hit the headlines on Tuesday.

A spokesperson for Mr Dutton said the family was dealing with the matter privately, with Tom Elliott saying he felt for the Opposition Leader as he deals with the public fallout of the actions of his son.

Click PLAY to hear Tom Elliott’s full editorial on 3AW

“Kids at that age do sometimes do stupid things,” he said on 3AW Mornings.

“One of the issues I have with some of our policies about drugs is it tell kids it’s OK. Pill testing by the state government at music festivals actually tells a young person that…it legitamises party drugs.”

Image: Getty