After being struck by a car in what Prime Minister Anthony Albanese claims may have been a premeditated attack, Australian MP Helen Haines is seriously ill in a Melbourne hospital. On Monday afternoon, the 65-year-old independent MP was attacked outside her constituency office in Wangaratta, Victoria. A 43-year-old man from the neighbouring town of Tarrawingee was apprehended at the site by a bystander, and according to the police, a knife was discovered inside the vehicle.
Although they do not think there is a “continuous threat to the community,” police are looking into if it was a “intentional act.” Albanese stated that “there is no place for violence in a democracy” in response to shock and dismay expressed by political leaders. Albanese acknowledged that Australia’s political climate has been getting hotter, but he said it was too early to determine the motivation behind what had occurred.
Tony Burke, his minister of home affairs, supported that claim with data indicating that the number of allegations of intimidating or harassing behaviour directed at politicians had increased from 951 to 1,067 during the previous 12 months. At 15:35 (04:35 GMT), Haines was struck by a white Toyota Landcruiser outside her Wangaratta office on Murphy Street, according to the police.
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