Australian PM says attack on lawmaker Helen Haines was deliberate

The car that struck an independent Australian lawmaker outside her office had made a U-turn before hitting her, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has said, describing the incident as deliberate.

Helen Haines had surgery overnight and remains in critical condition. She was hit by a white Toyota Land Cruiser in Wangaratta, about three hours’ drive northeast of Melbourne, on Monday.

“It’s clear that there was a deliberate act here. This wasn’t an accident, someone just skidding off the road,” Albanese told ABC News.

He said early investigations suggest Haines was loading or unloading her car boot when she was hit.

Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke said witnesses reported that the alleged attacker reversed and struck Haines a second time before a bystander stepped in.

Australian media reported that local barber Ricky Jefferies restrained the man and took a knife from him.

“I heard a loud bang with no brakes. It was crazy, I just ran out to the front to see what’s happening,” Jefferies told reporters.

A 43-year-old man has been arrested, and counter-terrorism authorities are among the agencies investigating.

Police are considering charges including causing harm to a public official, which carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison, Australian Federal Police Commissioner Krissy Barrett said.

“At this stage it appears this is an isolated incident,” she said.

Violent attacks on politicians are extremely rare in Australia, where lawmakers are often seen in public with little security.

Haines, a former nurse, midwife and academic, has represented the seat of Indi as an independent since 2019.

Albanese said it was too early to know the motive but noted a “significant increase” in threats against politicians in recent years.

“We all have a responsibility to turn the temperature down,” he said.