Angus Taylor has sidestepped questions about whether Coalition also distributes “dirt sheets” on fellow politicians amid criticism of Anthony Albanese for his office circulated one about Independent Victorian MP Helen Haines weeks before her attack.
The Opposition leader insisted on Friday he was “not interested in games” when asked if his side of politics had also collated and sent the documents to journalists and insisted the Prime Minister was the one with questions to answer.
Brendan Nugent, 43, allegedly twice rammed Dr Haines with his four-wheel-drive just metres from her Victorian electoral office on Monday afternoon.
Melbourne’s The Alfred hospital on Friday morning confirmed Dr Haines’ condition remained critical but stable after spending a fourth night in hospital.
The attack shocked the nation and prompted parliamentarians to reconsider their language to each other, with Mr Albanese reiterating calls to “turn the temperature down” .
But the PM has been dubbed hypocritical by One Nation leader Pauline Hanson after it was revealed Labor had created a document questioning if the Indi MP integrity after she pressured Mr Albanese on a grant program.
Dr Haines had been critical of Mr Albanese for a $6 million grant awarded to Marrickville Golf Club — which is in his electorate and he holds a honorary membership.
Days later a document was circulated to select journalists questioning whether Dr Haines had conflicts of interest with funding proposals she was advocating for.
The Prime Minister has claimed a dirt sheet distributed from his office was merely aimed at highlighting that “people of integrity stand up for their electorate”.
Mr Albanese did not deny the existence of the file in a media blitz this week — instead saying Dr Haines was a “good member”.
“She put forward applications like other members do for grants, and that’s what good local members do. Helen Haines is a very strong advocate for her community,” he told News24.
But the saga has angered many across the political spectrum in the wake of the attack.
Fellow independent senator David Pocock described Mr Albanese’s actions as “not good enough”, while One Nation’s Barnaby Joyce labelled it a “pathetic attempt to demean and diminish a very decent lady”.
Mr Joyce said it was “infuriatingly ridiculous” for Mr Albanese to not apologise for the dirt file, arguing the Prime Minister’s office thought Australians were “stupid”.
“It is just so infuriatingly ridiculous that you think we’re all that stupid when the only people who are as dumb as a bag of hammers are residing in the Prime Minister of Australia’s office,” he told News24.
Mr Taylor brushed off the question on Friday of whether the Liberals also distributed similar “dirt sheets”.
“Oh, I don’t know what you mean by dirt sheets,” he said.
“The Prime Minister should speak for what he’s done but accountability matters in politics, and I think that’s how it should be.
“I’m not interested in games.
“I’m interested in a better government. I’m interested in holding this government to account for its failures.”
It comes after he declined to be drawn on the matter at a press conference in Melbourne on Thursday.
Deputy Liberal leader Jane Hume had earlier declared Mr Albanese’s comments showed he had “a problem with the truth”.
Several Labor MP’s rejected how the dirt file had been characterised by One Nation and in media reports since the attack.
Mark Butler said it was his understanding that the document related to whether other MPs on the crossbench or Coalition also had relationships with organisations which received grants as either patrons, life members, or an honorary membership like Mr Albanese.
“It was done in an open way. It was done in the Parliament. It was done through the media, often driven by the media,” Mr Butler claimed.
“And it was pretty unremarkable, I have to say. I reject that characterisation. I don’t think it’s the right characterisation of what happened during that debate.”
Mr Butler said the politics at the time of the document were unrelated to the attack and urged people turn their focus to the recovery of Dr Haines and support of her family.
“Of all weeks? I thought what we were all trying to do was to send all of our love and our energy to Helen and her family while she remains in a hospital bed,” Mr Butler said.
Politician from all sides have continued to express their shock at the attack on Dr Haines and their safety concerns in a heightened political environment.
Communications Minister Anika Wells was the latest target of violence after her Brisbane office had to be closed following a security incident on Wednesday morning.
“We made the decision to close the office temporarily while security improvements are made,” Ms Wells said in a statement.
“Our staff deserve to feel safe at work and this kind of behaviour is always unacceptable.
“We will reopen as soon as possible and continue to be accessible to the community and contactable while this temporary closure is in place.”
It comes after a horror year of threats for Ms Wells, with a man arrested in December 2025 after vowing in an email to murder not only her but her three children aged under 10.
WA Labor Minister Hannah Beazley experienced a similar issue at her Victoria Park office this week, when a man allegedly verbally abused her two staff while holding homemade nunchucks.
Labor are now considering plans to increase home security and police protections for parliamentarians in the wake of the alleged attack.
Since the Australian Federal Police created “National Security Investigations” teams in October last year to tackle politically motivated violence, 41 individuals have been charged for offences relating to threats against high office holders.
Transport Minister Catherine King said it would be disappointing if politicians couldn’t be as accessible because of the growing threats against them. ‘
“People just need to check themselves a bit before they’re emailing or putting comments in. We’ve been subject to even further vitriol. It’s been pretty shocking,” she said.
“We can’t change what’s happened but what we can do is really control how we respond. And that’s not just about politicians, that’s about all of us.
“I think we should be so proud as a country that we’ve got politicians that (are) so accessible.
“Our very job is to listen to people, talk to them and understand what’s happening in our communities.
“That is just part of how we do our jobs, and I don’t think any of us want that to stop.
“But we’ve also got to be safe in our workplaces as well.”
Health Minister Mark Butler said Labor was also consulting with Dr Haines family told hold a special session to honour the Federal MP when Parliament returns on Monday.
“We’ll be talking across the aisles about that, talking to Helen’s family about that as well,” he said.