Moment Albanese dodges question about role he played in Helen Haines dirt file that left independent MP ‘disgusted’ before alleged attack: ‘That’s not an answer’
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has failed to deny that he approved or was aware of a ‘dirt sheet’ circulated by his office about independent MP Helen Haines.
Haines lost a leg and remains in a critical condition after she was allegedly rammed against her car by a Toyota LandCruiser and struck a second time outside her office in Wangaratta, in north-east Victoria, on Monday afternoon.
Following the alleged incident, Albanese called for the political temperature to be lowered as he praised Haines and warned against unjustified attacks on politicians’ motives.
But the Daily Mail exclusively revealed on Tuesday that the Prime Minister’s office circulated a ‘dirt sheet’ to journalists just weeks before, raising questions about her integrity after she criticised a $6million government grant allocated to the Marrickville Golf Club in Sydney’s inner west.
The document did not provide any evidence of wrongdoing, but made insinuations about avenues reporters could look into. (See our full copy of the dirt sheet here.)
When asked about the document on News24 on Wednesday, Albanese did not answer the question and instead praised the independent MP.
‘Were you aware or [did you give] approval to your office to distribute to the press gallery information about Helen Haines?’ host Kieran Gilbert asked.
Albanese said: ‘Helen Haines is a good local member.
‘She put forward applications like other members do for grants, and that’s what good local members do, and Helen Haines is a very strong advocate for her community.’
Anthony Albanese (pictured) refused to comment on the ‘dirt sheet’ circulated by his office about independent MP Helen Haines
Albanese’s office circulated a list of funding requests and lines of questioning about Haines
Gilbert then followed up about the file, asking: ‘So did the office send that out? Do you regret that in hindsight, given the events of recent days?’
Albanese did not directly answer the question.
‘Helen Haines is a strong advocate for her community, and she advocates for funding, just as the Coalition made more than 1,000 commitments worth $1.644 billion during the election campaign,’ he said.
‘That’s what local members do for their local communities.’
Our reporting revealed that the dirt sheet, which bore the name of the Prime Minister’s deputy director of communications, catalogued funding requests made by Haines for projects in her regional Victorian electorate and suggested lines of inquiry for reporters.
It questioned whether Haines had received undeclared gifts, held business interests, accepted political donations or maintained personal relationships with organisations that could potentially benefit from government funding.
Daily Mail Political and Economics Editor Peter van Onselen said Albanese had failed to explain either the purpose of the document or his office’s role in distributing it.
‘The PM was asked whether he knew about or approved the dirt file. He answered by praising Helen Haines,’ he said.
Haines remains in a critical condition after she was struck by a vehicle outside her office
‘That’s not an answer. It leaves entirely unexplained why his office circulated insinuations about her integrity.
‘This document appeared after Haines challenged the $6 million grant to the Prime Minister’s local golf club. If the purpose wasn’t to discredit her, what was it? Albo has offered no explanation for either its timing or its contents.’
Van Onselen said the Prime Minister’s defence of Haines during the interview sat uneasily alongside the contents of the briefing note.
‘The PM now says advocating for local funding is what good MPs do. Yet his office invited journalists to treat Haines’ advocacy as grounds for suspicion about undeclared gifts and personal interests.’
‘The dirt file had no evidence of undisclosed wrongdoing. He hasn’t addressed that contradiction.
‘When I showed Helen the document at the time I received it, she was disgusted. She was openly advocating for community projects, and suddenly found her personal integrity being questioned without supporting evidence.
‘The Prime Minister’s praise for her now is welcome, but it doesn’t explain his office’s disgraceful treatment of her then.’
On Tuesday evening, Victoria Police charged 43-year-old Brendan Nugent over the alleged hit-and-run that left Haines seriously injured.
He has been charged with dangerous driving causing serious injury and intentionally causing serious injury, following an investigation by detectives into the incident.
Police also laid a federal charge of causing harm to a Commonwealth public official against Nugent, with a maximum sentence of 10 years behind bars if convicted.
Nugent briefly appeared before Wangaratta Magistrates Court on Wednesday. He did not apply for bail and was remanded in custody to face court again in February.
