What we know about apparent attack on Australian MP hit by car
Helen Haines was hit by a car in what the prime minister has called a "deliberate act".
What we know about apparent attack on Australian MP hit by car
Australian MP Helen Haines has been taken to hospital with critical injuries after being struck by a car, in what Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has described as "a deliberate act".
Haines was hit near an office in Wangaratta, north-east of Melbourne, on Monday afternoon local time.
Albanese said counter-terrorism police are part of the investigation.
Victoria Police said Haines was struck by a White Toyota Landcruiser driven by a 43-year-old Tarrawingee man.
The suspect was arrested at the scene by a passer-by before officers took him into custody, police added.
A knife was also found inside the Toyota, the force said.
Victoria Police said it was not known whether the suspect and Haines knew each other, and the investigation is still ongoing.
Haines is a 65-year-old Independent MP for the Indi division in Victoria, south-eastern Australia.
According to a biography on her website, she grew up in south-west Victoria on a dairy farm with four brothers before training as a nurse and a midwife.
The biography says she became matron of the Chiltern Bush Nursing Hospital in Victoria at 26, before later earning a master's degree in public health and a PhD in Medical Science while raising her three children and working. She lives with her family on a small cattle farm outside Wangaratta.
She was first elected to the Australian House of Representatives in 2019 and was re-elected in 2022 and 2025.
Haines's family said the incident took place outside her electorate office in Wangaratta, a city of about 30,000 people a few hours north-east of Melbourne in Victoria.
Police said she was hit outside an office on Murphy Street at about 15:35 local time (05:35 BST).
During a live interview on ABC's 7.30 programme, Albanese appeared close to tears when asked whether Australian politicians speak among themselves about the threats and risks they face.
"Yes," he said, adding: "My concern at this point in time is for one, one of my colleagues."
He later spoke of a "rise in temperature" and "too much shouting, not enough discourse" in Australia.
At a news conference, Australian Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke said reports of harassing and threatening behaviour towards lawmakers had increased in the 2025-26 financial year, compared with 951 in the previous year.
Paying tribute to Haines at the news conference, Albanese called her "incredibly hard-working".
"She is fiercely intelligent but most importantly she is just a thoroughly decent human being full of integrity and respected right across the Parliament and from everyone who comes into contact with her", he added.
He said the attack would be an "incredible shock" to her community.
Australia's Foreign Minister Penny Wong called the incident a "shocking and deeply disturbing attack".
Victoria Premier Ben Carroll said he was "deeply appalled" by the "violent attack".
Australia's opposition leader Angus Taylor said he was "deeply saddened and distressed" by the attack.
"This is a shocking day for our nation," he said. "No-one should be targeted in this way."