Bridget McKenzie fears MPs will ‘retreat from the public square’ following alleged attack on Helen Haines – as it happened
News Source
•Tue, 27 Oct 2026 06:28:14 GMT
📰 What Happened
Nationals Senate leader Bridget McKenzie says she fears MPs will "retreat from the public square" after an alleged attack on independent MP Helen Haines. She told the ABC that what happened to Haines makes Australian democracy "all the more precious".
McKenzie said she is thinking about adding security at her own office. She said MPs worry most about staff, who often take the abusive phone calls.
Earlier, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese promised a "swift government response" on MP safety. Ideas include duress alarms for electorate offices. Labor minister Anne Aly said she already has one at work and at home.
🔍 The Backstory
Helen Haines is the independent MP for Indi, a rural seat in north-east Victoria. She won it in 2019 after the Nationals had held it for many years. She has pushed for a federal anti-corruption body and better country health services.
Independent MPs depend on public events, mobile offices and town meetings to stay in touch with voters. They have no big party machine behind them, so face-to-face contact matters even more.
MP safety has been a growing worry in Canberra. Albanese said politicians and their staff have "put up with threats for too long", and he raised the idea of duress alarms for political offices.
🎯 Why It Matters
If MPs stop holding public events, voters lose the easiest way to meet them. Local problems get heard less, and politics drifts further from ordinary people.
Nationals Senate leader Bridget McKenzie says she fears MPs will "retreat from the public square" after an alleged attack on independent MP Helen Haines. She told the ABC that what happened to Haines makes Australian democracy "all the more precious".
McKenzie said she is thinking about adding security at her own office. She said MPs worry most about staff, who often take the abusive phone calls.
Earlier, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese promised a "swift government response" on MP safety. Ideas include duress alarms for electorate offices. Labor minister Anne Aly said she already has one at work and at home.
Helen Haines is the independent MP for Indi, a rural seat in north-east Victoria. She won it in 2019 after the Nationals had held it for many years. She has pushed for a federal anti-corruption body and better country health services.
Independent MPs depend on public events, mobile offices and town meetings to stay in touch with voters. They have no big party machine behind them, so face-to-face contact matters even more.
MP safety has been a growing worry in Canberra. Albanese said politicians and their staff have "put up with threats for too long", and he raised the idea of duress alarms for political offices.
If MPs stop holding public events, voters lose the easiest way to meet them. Local problems get heard less, and politics drifts further from ordinary people.