Independent federal MP Helen Haines remains in critical condition after being struck by a vehicle outside her electorate office in Wangaratta, Victoria.

Forty-three-year-old Brendan Nugent from nearby Tarrawingee, has been arrested in relation to the incident.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, meanwhile, has described the incident as a deliberate targeted act, and the joint counter-terrorism team has been activated.

Investigators have stressed the motive remains unknown, but the incident occurs against a troubling backdrop.

Australian authorities and researchers have warned for years about increasing anti-government and anti-authority sentiment, conspiracy beliefs and the potential for political grievances to spill over into violence.

Threats against politicians are also increasing. The Australian Federal Police recorded 1067 reports of violent threats against high-office holders in 2025-26, up from 951 in 2024-25.

Threats are not just restricted to politicians or the government of the day: They extend to anyone in a position of authority.

What is anti-government extremism

Anti-government extremism is not one coherent ideology or organisation. It can encompass sovereign citizens, conspiracy theorists and others who come to see government institutions as fundamentally corrupt, illegitimate or actively working against ordinary citizens.

It covers the entire political spectrum from the extreme left to the extreme right, as well as other movements that may reject the legitimacy or authority of the state.

It is a subcategory of political extremism, where anti-government extremists primarily or........

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