Helen Haines live updates: Alleged attacker Brendan Nugent to face court in Wangaratta this morning

Key events1h agoAlleged attacker appearing at Wangaratta magistrates court this morningThe sister of murdered UK MP Jo Cox has said the attack on Australian MP Dr Helen Haines could be a moment for Australia to “find common ground” and change the way politics is practised in this country.Cox was killed in 2016, shot and stabbed by a far-right extremist outside a library as she prepared to meet with constituents.Her sister, Kim Leadbeater, is now the MP for the electorate her late sister held.“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 told the ABC’s 7:30.“That was something my sister was brilliant at and I would imagine it’s something Helen is good at.“I am devastated for Helen and for her family, her friends, her colleagues, her staff, that I am probably one of the few people, I suppose, that can understand a little bit of what they’re going through.”British MP Kim Leadbeater. Photograph: Jaimi Joy/ReutersLeadbeater said it was frustrating that the tenor and tone of UK politics had not changed in the decade since her sister’s death.“I find it really frustrating that we’re having the same conversation and every time something so horrific happens.”Leadbeater said while political debate should be robust, she said the deterioration of public debate towards coarseness and personal attacks, was part of a broader societal trend.“Things don’t happen in a vacuum and horrendous attacks and incidents like this don’t happen in isolation,” she said.“They are part of a wider culture around politics and society [and] we all have a role to play in that.”Prayer vigil held in Wodonga for HainesParishioners gathered for a prayer vigil for Dr Helen Haines at St John’s Anglican Church in Wodonga evening on Tuesday evening. Members lit candles and prayed as a group for Haines’s recovery led by the Venerable Canon Scott Jessup, Archdeacon of the Hume, with some of those present visibly upset.A prayer vigil for Helen Haines at St John’s Anglican Church in Wodonga last night led by the Venerable Canon Scott Jessup, vicar of Wodonga and Archdeacon of the Hume. Photograph: Mridula Amin/The GuardianA woman at the vigil in Wodonga. Photograph: Mridula Amin/The GuardianA prayer vigil for Helen Haines at St John’s Anglican Church in Wodonga last night. Photograph: Mridula Amin/The GuardianAmong the group were those who knew Haines personally including Dr Lachlan McKeeman, who trained under her and was endorsed by the MP as an independent candidate in the upcoming Victorian state election.“Helen is a much-loved friend and mentor of mine, and we’ve been advocating for our health service locally. She’s the kind of person that would check in on doctors [to see] if they’re OK after doing a press conference about the cultural issues at the [Albury-Wodonga] hospital,” said McKeeman.He said he still couldn’t find the words to describe what happened to his friend while she “was at work serving her community”.Mayor of Wodonga, Michael Gobel, was also present at the vigil, saying Haines was someone he admired deeply.“I was gutted when the news came through … she’s a person of incredible integrity,” said Gobel.Tracee Hutchison will not run in Victoria’s state election in November, despite winning almost a quarter of first preferences at the by-election in May, citing rising violence towards women.Speaking to AAP, Hutchison shared her distress for Helen Haines and also recalled her personal experience of “a sustained, organised harassment and bullying campaign”. double quotation markThe verbal harassment I experienced, and that the women my team did, was unlike anything I had anticipated. Hutchison said she reported threats and feeling unsafe to the Victorian Electoral Commission every day during pre-polling. double quotation markThere is no framework for the officers to do anything other than come out to the polling booth and tell everyone to behave. They then go back inside and people kick off again. Alleged attacker appearing at Wangaratta magistrates court this morningHelen Haines’s alleged attacker, Brendan Nugent, has been charged with dangerous driving causing serious injury, intentionally causing serious injury and the commonwealth offence of causing harm to a commonwealth public official.Brendan Nugent will appear in court this morning to face three charges after the alleged attack. Photograph: Australian Broadcasting Corporation/ReutersHe was held overnight to appear at Wangaratta magistrates court this morning at 9.30am, Victoria police confirmed in a statement, adding that it would be alleged the attack was targeted.Read the full story here:We’ll have all the developments as they happen.Good morningGood morning and welcome to our rolling coverage of the attack on Helen Haines.A man will appear at Wangaratta court at 9.30am this morning charged with dangerous driving causing serious injury, intentionally cause serious injury and the commonwealth offence of causing harm to a commonwealth public official.Before that, Victoria’s police chief Mike Bush and AFP commissioner Krissy Barrett will give a press conference in Melbourne at 9am to give a briefing about the investigation.We’ll have all the latest developments.