MELBOURNE: Australian lawmaker Helen Haines has had both legs amputated after being hit by a car, her husband said on Wednesday, describing her as a “fighter” despite critical injuries sustained in what police described as a targeted attack.
Haines is now in a stable condition at a Melbourne hospital, days after being struck by a car on Monday near her office in the town of Wangaratta, just over 200 kilometres (120 miles) northeast of the Victoria state capital.
The incident has prompted soul-searching in a country where political violence is rare, but where police have documented a steady rise in threats and abuse towards elected officials in recent years.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has led tributes to Haines, an independent member of parliament and a passionate campaigner for transparency and against corruption.
He has also acknowledged the need for Australians to turn down the temperature and embrace respectful disagreement rather than polarisation.
Speaking at the hospital on Wednesday, Haines’s husband of almost 40 years, Phil, said surgeons had been forced to amputate both her legs after days in intensive care.
“But the good news in all this is Helen is alive and she’s stable. That is the most important thing for our family,” he said.
“The two most important parts of Helen for us as a family are her heart and her mind.
“Her heart is huge. She is a very compassionate, caring, loving person.
“Helen’s road to recovery will be long and difficult, but we know she is a fighter.”
‘Extremist views’
The man alleged to have wounded Haines in what police have called a “targeted” attack faced court for the first time earlier on Wednesday.
Forty-three-year-old Brendan Nugent has been charged with dangerous driving causing serious injury and intentionally causing serious injury, as well as the federal crime of harming a public official, which carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison.
He has also been charged with cultivating a cannabis plant and possessing the drug, according to court documents shared with AFP.
Nugent appeared at a courthouse in Wangaratta, an AFP journalist at the scene said.
He did not speak in court or apply for bail, and his next hearing is scheduled for February 4.
Governor-General Sam Mostyn — King Charles III’s official representative in Australia — said the nation was crying out for “decency”.
“Australians are yearning for kindness and care, and they’re asking us why we’ve lost the great skill of disagreeing well,” Mostyn said alongside Phil Haines.
The motive remains unknown, and authorities will not speculate while the investigation is ongoing.
However, police said on Wednesday they were examining all possible leads, including whether Nugent may have held radical anti-government views.
“We’re examining social media associations, talking to witnesses, friends and colleagues,” Victoria Police Commissioner Mike Bush told journalists.
Bush said authorities had no intelligence on the suspect and had seen nothing to suggest he posed an immediate threat.
Australian Federal Police Commissioner Krissy Barrett pointed to a growing and concerning level of “extremist views” online.
She said the incident was “what many had been dreading for some time”.
World ‘more dangerous’
Haines entered parliament in 2019 after working as a nurse and midwife, becoming known for positions including support for stronger climate action.
The independent lawmaker, 65, was standing near the boot of her car when she was struck by a Toyota Land Cruiser on Monday afternoon.
Witnesses told national broadcaster ABC they saw her pinned between the two vehicles.
Threats against Australian lawmakers and electorate offices doubled between 2021 and 2025, with 1,067 incidents reported to police last year.
Highlighting the tense climate, police in Western Australia charged a man late on Wednesday after he allegedly made threats and swung nunchucks at the office of state lawmaker Hannah Beazley, media reported.
The incident has drawn comparisons with other acts of violence against elected officials elsewhere, most notably the killing of British lawmaker Jo Cox outside her office in 2016.
“It’s a reminder that the world is a more dangerous and divided place than it was a generation ago,” Prime Minister Albanese told ABC Melbourne radio.