Independent Australian lawmaker Helen Haines remains critically ill in hospital after being struck by a car in an attack outside her office in rural Victoria.

Haines was injured on Monday afternoon as she retrieved something from the boot of her car, when another vehicle made a U-turn and struck her, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said on television Tuesday morning.

“This was a deliberate act,” he said. “The motivation is not clear at this point in time, but it is clear that this wasn’t just an accident.”

Haines, 65, was rushed to a local hospital and then to Melbourne, where she underwent emergency surgery on Monday night. The national broadcaster reported Tuesday that Haines had a leg amputated after suffering serious lower-body injuries.

Victorian police Acting Superintendent Ashley Mason said Monday that a 43-year old local man had been arrested following the incident, which occurred around 3:30 pm near Haines’ regional office in Wangaratta. The man was arrested at the scene by a passerby, according to a police statement, with police finding a knife in the vehicle.

“It appears this is an isolated incident, and there are no known threats connected to this matter,” the Federal Police said in a statement Tuesday.  The suspect is still in custody and could face charges including “causing harm to a Commonwealth public official” which carries a punishment of up to 10 years in prison, according to the statement.

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Police and Albanese have so far declined to comment on a potential motive. Victoria Police declined to identify the suspect, citing personal privacy rules.

A former nurse and midwife, Haines holds a Ph.D from a Swedish university and runs a small farm with her husband. She has been a prominent advocate for anti-corruption in government, and helped lay the groundwork for the National Anti-Corruption Commission that began in 2023.

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“Helen Haines is someone of integrity. She’s greatly admired right across the political spectrum,” Albanese said Tuesday. “She’s someone who’s characterized by her kindness, her diligence, her intelligence, someone who is so proud of representing that beautiful part of Victoria.”

‘Too Much Shouting’

Such an attack on a sitting politician in Australia is rare and likely to draw attention to an increase in abusive and violent rhetoric directed at public figures. Albanese on Monday was quick to point at social media, calling for a de-escalation of political rhetoric.

“There has been a rise in temperature and there has been too much shouting, not enough discourse,” Albanese said.

Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke said on Monday that there had been a continuous rise in threats toward senior officials, with 1,067 reports of harassing or threatening behavior against high office holders in the fiscal year that just ended.

Since establishing a special unit in October 2025, 41 people have been charged with making threats against federal politicians and high office holders, according to the AFP.

Rising threats have forced the government to increase security for public figures, especially ministers and people in senior positions, Albanese said, who called for a return of respectful debate.

“I think it’s very important in a democracy such as ours that we cherish the fact that people can get out and about at community events, he said. “That’s an important part of who we are as Australians.”