The man charged over the attack of Australian MP Helen Haines, who remains in a critical condition, has briefly faced court. Our correspondent Katy Watson was in the courtroom
Brendan Nugent did not apply for bail. He is due to return to court in February
Nugent, 43, has been charged with dangerous driving causing serious injury, intentionally causing serious injury, and causing harm to a Commonwealth public official
Haines suffered severe lower body injuries, and local media have reported one of her legs has been amputated
Police have not ruled out additional charges, including attempted murder
They say the motive for the alleged attack is still unclear and they had no previous indication that Nugent could have carried out something this "atrocious"
'I'm not a hero': Man intervenes in Australian MP attack
A Wangaratta local barber was among a group of by-standers who were first on the scene and detained the driver of the car that hit Helen Haines.
Image source, Getty ImagesBen Carroll, the Premier of Victoria, has said in a statement that what happened to Haines raised fears that Australia was "straying" from its democratic principles.
He said he visited Haines's campaign office a couple of years ago and was struck by "a warmth you rarely ever find in politics".
"Why would you attack someone who has spent her life making things better?" he wrote. "If you care about Australia, and the place we might become, today calls for soul searching."
"And I genuinely fear that we're straying from the principles of our democracy. Respect. Equality. A fair go."
A sketch from Brendan Nugent's brief court appearance has just come through.
Cameras and recording devices are banned in courtrooms in Victoria unless special permission has been granted to film proceedings.
Image source, ReutersAlbanese spoke to Haines' husband on the night she was rushed to hospital in Melbourne, where she remains in a critical condition, and on again on Wednesday morning.
"We continue to engage and reach out to the family for whatever it is that they need, as well as [the] community that's really going through a traumatic period. This was not something that they would have anticipated and is a shock, I think, to all," he told ABC radio.
Many MPs have been talking about the threats they receive today, Australia's Prime Minister Anthony Albanese among them.
But in an interview with the ABC, Albanese said it is particularly scary for women in politics, saying there is "a different form of vilification and aggression towards" them.
"The nature of it can often be sexualised. I mean, threats of rape, unfortunately, something that most women parliamentarians can tell you they have received," he said.
"That is shocking."
Last night, Minister for Social Services Tanya Plibersek told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation she'd received countless death and rape threats in the almost 30 years she'd been in parliament.
And just a day after the apparent attack, Plibersek said a stranger online had told her she “deserves to meet a Landcruiser” - the type of car used to run Haines down.
Several bystanders who rushed to help Helen Haines in the seconds after she was hit by a car have revealed the first words she said to them as she lay severely injured.
"Thank you, you lovely people," is what Haines said, according to the Herald-Sun.
Jacob and Jackie Evans were among the first to arrive on the scene, with Jacob grabbing a tourniquet from a medical kit he had in his car and using it to help stem the bleeding from one of her legs.
"She was thanking us, it was incredible," Jackie tells Nine's Today programme.
"We were having conversations. She was telling me about her grandkids, I was just keeping her talking to us."
We're getting a few photos of Brendan Nugent leaving court after a brief appearance on charges laid over the alleged attack of Helen Haines.
Nugent will return to custody and is next due to appear at court in February.
Image source, EPA
Image source, EPA
Tiffanie Turnbull
BBC News, Sydney
This incident has sparked lots of discussion about the protection offered to politicians, with the federal police earlier today revealing they charge a person over threats against "high officer holders" and their staff almost every week.
MPs and public figures – backed by experts – have been warning of a volcano of threats against them as social cohesion cracks, polarisation intensifies and the tone of debate grows hotter.
Figures from across the spectrum have been describing a political climate in which they've found themselves wearing disguises in public, locking their office doors, and scanning every crowd for potential threats.
Women in politics are particularly scared, said Victorian state MP Georgie Purcell, who shares part of her electorate with Haines: "For many of us, the news... is our worst nightmare."
There have been frustrated rumblings in Canberra from some MPs who say security arrangements have not changed to match the threat and – if a political motivation for this incident is confirmed – that one of the greatest tenets of the nation's political culture could now be at risk.
Simon Atkinson
Australia producer reporting from Wangaratta
Court documents reveal Nugent is facing additional charges of cultivating cannabis and possessing cannabis.
The documents state the offences are alleged to have been committed at Tarrawingee, where Nugent's home is, on October 20.
Local media report that his property was raided by police yesterday.
Image source, Getty ImagesAustralia's Governor-General Sam Mostyn has told local radio she knows Helen Haines well and was last with her a few weeks ago.
"She is the embodiment of what we want our public officials to be," Mostyn told ABC Radio Goulburn Murray. "I think Helen would say 'Let's be better'."
Like many of those commenting after the attack, Mostyn has called for the anger tainting political discourse to be toned down.
"I'd like to see Australians really exercise the muscle of decency because I think that’s what we are at our core. Wrestle the idea, not the person."
On the day of the attack, Mostyn released a statement saying it had deeply shocked her.
"In the days ahead we will have an opportunity to reflect on the growth of incivility in our community and commit ourselves to showing care and kindness, and being respectful in all that we do," she said.
The governor-general is the representative of the British monarch - Australia's head of state.
Image source, Getty ImagesThe family of murdered UK MP Jo Cox has called on Australia to unite against political violence.
Cox was murdered aged 41 in 2016, when she was shot and stabbed multiple times by a far-right extremist.
Her sister Kim Leadbeater, who is now the representative for the same electorate, told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation's 7.30 programme that she was devastated for the family and friends of Helen Haines.
"Maybe for Australia this is your moment to think about what your politics looks like and how we can bring people together [and] find common ground," she said.
"That was something my sister was brilliant at, and I would imagine it's something Helen [Haines] is good at."
Brendan Cox, the late MP's husband, wrote in The Guardian that the news hit him like "a punch to the gut".
"We cannot undo what happened to Jo. We cannot take away the pain of those affected by the alleged attack in Australia. But we can decide what kind of society we build in response."
"We can allow violence to make us more divided, more suspicious and more fearful. Or we can use this moment to reaffirm our commitment to democracy, decency and what we have in common."
BBC's Australian correspondent Katy Watson is in Wangaratta and says the town is reeling from the apparent attack against local MP Helen Haines.
In this short video, she explains what's happened in the close-knit town since Monday afternoon's incident.
Shock and disbelief: How the attack on an Australian MP unfolded in a small rural town
Simon Atkinson
Australia producer
During the brief hearing, Brendan Nugent’s lawyer Chirag Patel flagged to the magistrate that his client had "mental health concerns" - but didn't say what they were.
He said Nugent was suffering from concussion, but didn't say for how long or whether he was experiencing symptoms before Monday's incident.
And he also said Nugent has a rare neurological condition - idiopathic transverse myelitis, caused by inflammation of the spinal cord.
The 43-year-old is not currently on any medication the court was told.
There was much more discussion of Nugent’s health than the incident itself and the magistrate indicated few details of the case against him would be released at this time, despite an application by the media including the BBC.
Katy Watson
Australia correspondent reporting from Wangaratta
Appearing in court for the first time, Brendan Nugent sat in the dock dressed in a grey-blue sweater, two custody officers with him.
He looked around the court as the hearing, which was over in minutes, took place: up at the TV screen that was streaming the matter, then at the benches of reporters.
Space in court two was tight, journalists squeezed on to three benches along with police and members of the public. There was little more than a metre between the dock and where I was sitting.
Nugent didn’t show any emotion, and stood only when the magistrate spoke to him about attending a committal hearing in February. He nodded once, but said nothing.
Victoria Police and the Australian Federal Police have just given a 30-minute press conference on their investigations into the Helen Haines incident on Monday afternoon.
Here's what we learnt:
The alleged attacker, 43-year-old Brendan Nugent, has briefly faced court for the first time in Wangaratta.
He is charged with three offences: dangerous driving causing serious injury, intentionally causing serious injury and the federal offence of causing harm to a public official.
The court heard that there would no application for bail today, and that the matter would return to court in February for a committal hearing.
Let's bring you a comment from Australian Federal Police's Krissy Barrett earlier when asked if it is realistic for every federal MP to have their own close protection detail, or personal bodyguard.
"That would be an incredible amount of resourcing," she said.
"We take a threat risk and vulnerability approach - that is our model when we're looking at all 226 federal parliamentarians."
Police assess the individual, the role they are in and the threat environment around them, she says.
The press conference has wrapped up but here's a few comments that Victoria Police Commissioner Mike Bush made earlier.
On a motive behind the attack, Bush said it was still being investigated.
"Motivation is one of these things that we absolutely need to explore. His motivation for this - what we allege is a deliberate attack - is very much a centrepiece of the investigation," he said.
"Our people will continue to explore every element, angle and avenue to work that out."
"It's something that, when we work towards it, discover it, we will present in court."
He was also asked if the suspect has been cooperating with police and replied: "I can't go into any of those details."
Image source, Victoria PoliceKrissy Barrett says a specialist team set up to investigate threats against "high office holders" and their staff is charging almost one person every week.
"By and large they are absolutely shocked that we're at the door and that we're charging them," she said.
"And they say, 'Oh I didn't mean anything by it, I actually wasn't going to carry out the threat. It doesn't matter, it is an offence... and it does do damage."
She says the AFP is focused on making sure those who are making threats from behind a keyboard know there are "serious consequences".
Simon Atkinson
Australia producer reporting from Wangaratta
A police “paddy wagon” carrying Brendan Nugent to court pulled into the building a few minutes ago. The 43-year-old was not visible from beyond the court gates.
