I too rise today to extend both my and my community's heartfelt love, thoughts and best wishes to Helen, her husband, Phil, her family, her friends, her electorate office team and her community at this extremely difficult time. We all can't wait to have Helen back in here with us in the chamber continuing her strong advocacy for her community and for regional Australia. Like all of us, I was deeply shocked and saddened by the horrific attack on the member for Indi outside her electorate office in Wangaratta. This attack has indeed shocked and saddened Australians nationwide, including so many in my electorate in northern New South Wales. I really want to acknowledge the first responders, the emergency services personnel, the medical professionals, all those members of the public who came to her assistance and those who continue to care for Helen.

Helen is such a well-loved member of her community, and that's evident by the outpouring of love from so many individuals and community groups right throughout her electorate. She's also very well respected and loved here in this parliament in all of our dealings with her, as is evident by all the speeches today. As we've heard from so many and as we all know, Helen is such a kind, decent, hardworking and intelligent woman. Her insights, grace and dignity bring an important and special dimension to every situation. She always approaches her role with genuine compassion and the desire to make a real difference. Helen's always dedicated so much to serving regional communities, including caring for others throughout her previous work in health care as a nurse, midwife, researcher and advocate for regional health services.

Since coming to parliament, we've all seen the passion, integrity and decency that Helen's displayed through her tireless work to deliver for her community and the very causes that she's committed to. Throughout Helen's time in parliament, she's always championed policies aimed at strengthening the long-term prosperity, resilience and sustainability of regional Australia. She consistently uses her voice to highlight the unique challenges faced by our regional communities and to ensure those communities are included in all of our national policy discussions. Of course, she's especially passionate about integrity as well, playing a very major role in this parliament in the establishment of the National Anti-Corruption Commission, or the NACC, and serving as a deputy chair on that committee. Her work on the NACC demonstrates her desire to strengthen the public's trust in our institutions and ensure accountability for governments.

I especially want to thank and acknowledge Helen's husband, Phil, for being here with us earlier today and, firstly, sharing his love for and devotion to Helen and, secondly, reminding all of us of the role we have in ensuring a more civil approach to the differences we may have in our communities and to the nature of our discourse and debates, and of the need to turn the temperature down in political debates.

While the police investigation into this horrific attack is still underway, this attack is a shocking reminder to all of us of the incredible rise in anger and violence in our community and of the decline in our social fabric. It's something we have all seen and been commenting upon here today. In fact, as we move forward, it's a matter that we all play a part in. All of us in this parliament, in every parliament, right throughout the general community and in the media as well have a strong role to play. We all need to be playing a role when it comes to that, because we've all seen the rise in anger and violence across the community, particularly over the last few years, and the intensity in the anger that's there. We see it against our police, first responders, teachers, healthcare workers, hospitality workers and retail workers. This has to change. It seems to get worse and worse all the time. As I said, we're all responsible—all of us—for ensuring the political debate in this country remains respectful. Of course we all accept disagreements, criticism and debate as part of our vibrant democracy, but we never, ever accept violence.

Indeed, as many people have commented today as well, social media has a major role to play. The platforms really need to turn the temperature down. They really need to do that. They should stop fuelling the anger and division we see in promoting many divisive algorithms that do fuel the division and do fuel the anger within people. We know that this contributes to the demise of our social fabric and the rise of anger and violence in our community. So we all have a role to play, right across the board, and we all need to step up and do that.

But today is the day that we that we send our love to Helen. I join with everyone in this House in sending our deepest love to Helen and her family. We all, of course, wish her an incredibly speedy recovery, and we very, very much look forward to Helen being right back here in the chamber with all of us.