Australian MPs report paying for security upgrades as agencies assess safety concerns

Australian MPs said they had spent thousands of dollars of their own money on security upgrades for homes and electorate offices, as federal security agencies discussed their safety concerns in briefings on 21 October following the alleged attack on MP Helen Haines in Wangaratta, Victoria. Guardian Australia reported that officials had committed to assessing the safety settings of MPs who raised specific concerns.

Guardian Australia interviewed 10 MPs after briefings with the Australian Federal Police and Asio. Home and electorate-office security was a common concern, and multiple politicians across party lines said they had paid for safety features on federal police advice. The report did not identify a total cost across parliament.

What MPs want for homes and electorate offices

Two Labor MPs told Guardian Australia that some government backbenchers were frustrated with the finance department over the funding and timing of electorate-office safety measures. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese told News24 that his government had increased security funding for parliamentarians over the preceding couple of years, according to Guardian Australia.

Guardian Australia reported that officials would assess the arrangements of MPs who raised specific concerns. The government and parliamentarians were also considering how to respond when parliament returned to Canberra the following week. Ideas included a committee on MPs’ safety, more police resources and providing MPs with more information about agencies’ continuing threat assessments. A broad government review was not expected at the time; the proposals had not been adopted.

The attack and the rise in reported threats

Haines was struck by a vehicle outside her Wangaratta office on 19 October and subsequently had both legs amputated, Al Jazeera reported in an article crediting AFP and AP. Police described the incident as a targeted attack. Australian Federal Police Commissioner Krissy Barrett said the agency had no specific intelligence of imminent danger from the alleged attacker. The motive remained under investigation.

Al Jazeera reported 1,067 incidents of threats, abuse or intimidation involving lawmakers and electorate offices in 2025, twice the 2021 figure. It also reported that police charged 41 people with offences relating to threats against parliamentarians last year. The figures describe a broader pattern of reported threats; they do not establish a motive for the alleged attack on Haines.

The new accounts of MPs paying for their own protection add a practical dimension to earlier reporting on the rise in threats against Australian politicians. MPs’ concerns now extend to who pays for precautions at offices and homes, and how quickly those precautions can be put in place.