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Human rights commission says ‘violence has no place in our society’ after alleged attack – as it happened

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‘It’s very clear that this was a deliberate act’, PM says

The prime minister, Anthony Albanese, said Haines’ alleged attacker “did a U-turn in order to get back to where Helen Haines was” after passing her on the road.

It would appear that the driver of the vehicle that inflicted the damage to Helen Haines did a U-turn in order to get back to where Helen Haines was after passing where she was getting things from the boot or putting things into the boot of her car.

So it’s clear that there was a deliberate act here, this wasn’t an accident – someone, you know, just getting off the road here.

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© Photograph: Mick Tsikas/EPA

© Photograph: Mick Tsikas/EPA

© Photograph: Mick Tsikas/EPA

Premier ‘deeply appalled’ after Indi MP Haines injured – as it happened

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‘No ongoing threat to community’: Victoria police

Mason tells journalists there is “nothing to indicate at this stage” that the two parties are known to each other, but police are still investigating.

I can provide some assurance to the community that we certainly do not have any intelligence that there is any further or ongoing threat to any other person or the broader community. We are treating this as an isolated incident at this point in time.

We’ve still got a lot to work through here. As you can imagine, it’s been quite dynamic this afternoon. We’ve got quite an extensive crime scene.

We have investigators present and they’ll continue to work through and try and collect all available evidence to ascertain exactly what has occurred and how it has occurred. We’ve got the Major Collision Investigation Unit who are currently en route from Melbourne.

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© Photograph: Mick Tsikas/AAP

© Photograph: Mick Tsikas/AAP

© Photograph: Mick Tsikas/AAP

‘Deeply appalled’: politicians condemn alleged attack after independent MP Helen Haines critically injured

Anthony Albanese says his thoughts are with Indi MP after arrest of driver in Wangaratta

The independent MP Helen Haines has been critically injured in an alleged attack involving a vehicle outside her electorate office in Wangaratta, in regional Victoria.

The prime minister, Anthony Albanese, confirmed on Monday night that a man was in custody after the alleged attack on Haines that was now being investigated by the Australian federal police (AFP), Asio and the joint counter-terror taskforce.

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© Photograph: Hilary Wardhaugh/Getty Images

© Photograph: Hilary Wardhaugh/Getty Images

© Photograph: Hilary Wardhaugh/Getty Images

Labor promises $30 weekly cap for Victorian public transport amid push for free travel

Premier Ben Carroll says two-year limited cap will start on 1 January if re-elected, while Greens say there should be no fares

Public transport fares in Victoria will be capped at $30 a week if the Labor government is re-elected next month – but commuters will need to dust off their Myki cards to benefit.

The premier, Ben Carroll, on Monday said the fare cap would begin on 1 January, the day after half-price fares end. The discounted fares were introduced after a period of free public transport in response to the fuel crisis sparked by the US-Iran war.

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© Photograph: Christopher Hopkins/AAP

© Photograph: Christopher Hopkins/AAP

© Photograph: Christopher Hopkins/AAP

An extraordinary life: descendant welcomes biography of woman ‘gifted’ to Queen Victoria

A girl called Àìná was captured by an African king and later taken to England to become Sarah Forbes Bonetta, protege of the imperial monarch

When she was seven years old, Bayo Randle’s great-great-grandmother Sarah Forbes Bonetta was presented to Queen Victoria at Windsor Castle as a “diplomatic gift” from an African king.

Victoria would go on to pay for Bonetta’s education, approve her marriage to one of west Africa’s wealthiest men, and become godmother to her eldest daughter.

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© Photograph: Royal Collection Trust / William Bambridge (1819-79)

© Photograph: Royal Collection Trust / William Bambridge (1819-79)

© Photograph: Royal Collection Trust / William Bambridge (1819-79)

Mortgage repayments are now cheaper than rent in some Australian suburbs. Is yours among them?

17 October 2026 at 00:00

As house prices plateau, the gap between the cost of buying and renting is narrowing in dozens of suburbs

High rents and falling property prices have opened a rare window for Australian tenants to become homeowners, with mortgage repayments cheaper than rent in dozens of suburbs.

Guardian Australia’s analysis of Cotality data shows that median rents in inner-city Melbourne, suburban Canberra and Darwin are now nearly matching weekly home loan repayments.

In one in 10 suburbs and towns across the country, repayments are less than $200 a week higher than rent, for the typical property. In some suburbs, they are actually cheaper.

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© Photograph: Westend61/Getty Images

© Photograph: Westend61/Getty Images

© Photograph: Westend61/Getty Images

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