Call for ‘dirt sheets’ to be scrapped as PM faces scrutiny over Helen Haines document

A growing number of federal politicians are calling for “dirt sheets” to be scrapped as Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s office faces scrutiny over a document about independent MP Helen Haines before she was allegedly attacked.

Haines was heavily critical of Labor’s invite-only election grant program ahead of the last federal election that saw the Marrickville Golf Club, in Albanese’s own electorate, win $6 million.

Albanese’s media team sent a document to select journalists in the press gallery about funding requests Haines had made on behalf of her own electorate in September.

The document, seen by nine.com.au, listed more than $1.8 billion in funding requests by Haines ahead of the 2025 budget in response to her accusations about the government’s “pork barrelling”.

The prime minister did not deny the existence of the document but said it was not personal criticism of Haines, but rather a “list of funding asks” that shows “people of integrity stand up for their electorate”.

Labor’s political opponents scrutinised the common practice on Thursday, labelling it “grubby” and “underhanded”.

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Shadow foreign affairs minister Ted O’Brien called on Albanese to be honest with the public and show leadership in the week Haines was left fighting for her life after being allegedly attacked by a driver outside her electorate on Monday.

“You can’t call a dirt sheet a compliment. It’s like throwing a political punch and calling it a hug. Let’s just be honest about these sort of things,” he told Today.

O’Brien said dirt sheets are “unfortunately a part of political practice”, but could not say whether the Coalition engaged in the same behaviour.

One Nation Leader Pauline Hanson accused the Coalition of joining Labor in engaging in what she called a “grubby practice”.

“Australians are struggling to pay their bills while the major parties use taxpayer-funded staff to shovel,” she said.

Independent Senator David Pocock said Albanese’s staff have clearly been caught engaging in “underhanded” behaviour.

“Trying to explain this away rather than acknowledging what happened, taking responsibility and apologising is not good enough,” he told The Australian.

“Whether or not this behaviour was authorised, it was wrong and there should be accountability.”

Greens Leader David Shoebridge called on the prime minister to explain what his credible argument is to send out a dirt sheet on Haines.

“Helen is a woman of incredible integrity and I don’t know who in the prime minister’s office thought it was a good idea to have an integrity fight between the Labor Party and Helen Haines,” he told Today.

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“Because every single time in that fight, I’ll tell you who’s going to win – Helen Haines.”

Haines remains in critical condition at The Alfred in Melbourne on Friday with both her legs amputated following the alleged attack outside her electorate office in Wangaratta on Monday.

Labor frontbencher Mark Butler, who denied the document was a dirt sheet, said it was not the week to have this conversation about it.

“This week of all weeks, when Helen is in a critical condition, I don’t understand why we are devoting energy to this rather than coming together, sending our love, sending our energy to Helen and her family, and having the debate that I think we are rightly having about the tenor of community discussion right now,” he told Sunrise.