A man has been charged after the Australian MP Helen Haines was allegedly attacked with a car outside her electorate office in the state of Victoria.

Haines, who is an independent MP, has lost one leg as a result of the incident and surgeons were fighting on Tuesday to save the other leg. Police say 43-year-old Brendan Nugent has been charged with dangerous driving causing serious injury, intentionally causing serious injury and causing harm to a commonwealth public official.

Annie Kelly speaks to Guardian Australia political editor Tom McIlroy

Victoria police arrested the 43-year-old Tarrawingee man on Monday afternoon after the incident in Wangaratta

• Who is Helen Haines, the MP allegedly attacked in Victoria?

• Brendan Nugent’s family say Haines has been their friend for more than 20 years

• Get our new political email, free app or daily news podcast

Helen Haines’ alleged attacker, Brendan Nugent, has been charged with dangerous driving causing serious injury, intentionally cause serious injury and the commonwealth offence of causing harm to a commonwealth public official.

He will be held overnight to appear at Wangaratta magistrates court on Wednesday, Victoria police confirmed in a statement, adding that it would be alleged the attack was targeted.

Father of 43-year-old Tarrawingee man who allegedly attacked the independent MP says incident is ‘devastating and unfathomable’

• Who is Helen Haines, the MP allegedly attacked in Victoria?

• Get our new political email, free app or daily news podcast

The father of a 43-year-old man accused of allegedly attacking Helen Haines has pledged to work with police and described the incident as “shocking and horrific”.

The independent MP remained in a critical condition on Tuesday after being airlifted from Wangaratta in northern Victoria to Melbourne’s Alfred hospital for emergency surgery on Monday night. She has lost one leg, with surgeons working to save the other.

This blog is now closed

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

• Helen Haines, the principled MP respected across parliament

‘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.

Independent MP is in critical yet stable condition after man allegedly did U-turn to strike her twice with his car

• Brendan Nugent’s family say Helen Haines has been their friend for more than 20 years

• ‘I don’t want to be known as a hero’: barber who rushed to help Helen Haines praised by PM

• Get our new political email, free app or daily news podcast

The man accused of attacking Helen Haines allegedly made a U-turn before ramming the independent MP twice in an alleged targeted attack near her electorate office, causing her to lose one of her legs.

The member for Indi was airlifted from Wangaratta in northern Victoria to Melbourne’s Alfred hospital for emergency surgery on Monday night.