Australian MP Helen Haines has spoken for the first time since having both legs amputated after an alleged car-ramming attack. The 65-year-old independent MP was airlifted to hospital with serious injuries after being hit by a vehicle outside her office in Wangaratta, north-east of Melbourne, last Monday.
Her first words following the incident were to ask about the safety of her staff and express thanks to doctors and bystanders who came to her rescue, it has emerged. Allegra Spender, MP for Wentworth, said her husband Phil Haines had revealed the independent MP's first waking moments in hospital.
First words in hospital
Speaking to parliament, Spender said: "Phil told us about your first words when you woke up after the attack. Your first concerns when you awoke were for your staff and gratitude to the first responders, nurses and bystanders. That exactly speaks to the character of who you are."
Spender added: "People have spoken about your empathy and grace, and they deserve recognition. But I think it paints a sort of picture of you as a sort of benign force wandering through the parliament. What I will say is that you are also a force for change."
Condition and charges
Ms Haines remains in a serious but stable condition in a Melbourne hospital. Her alleged attacker, 43-year-old Brendan Nugent, has appeared in court on three charges, including intentionally causing serious injury.
Nugent was arrested shortly after he allegedly drove his Toyota Land Cruiser into the MP. A police investigation remains ongoing with a motive yet to be revealed.
Investigation and tributes
A reported rift between Nugent and his family is one line of inquiry, Victoria Police confirmed last week. Commissioner Mike Bush told ABC News that officers were looking into whether Ms Haines was a "proxy" for attacking his family. Nugent's family has said they had been friends with Ms Haines for more than 20 years.
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese led tributes to Ms Haines on Monday. He described her as "a fighter" and said the shock from the alleged attack was "like a stone in our hearts". Looking to the MP's seat, he said: "It is hard to think of anyone in this place with a more irrepressible twinkle in the eye, a twinkle that more than hints at a real inner strength."
Other MPs also made emotional tributes in the chamber. Agriculture Minister Julie Collins said Ms Haines' first words were "not a surprise to any of us who know her". She said: "After everything that she has been through, she was thinking of others."
