Australian election news - Prime Minister Scott Morrison egged on the campaign trail.

 

Scott Morrison egged while campaigning in Albury

 

The Prime Minister has been egged by a female protester at a Country Women's Association (CWA) event at Albury, on the NSW-Victorian border.

 

The woman, 25, walked up behind Scott Morrison and threw an egg, which bounced off his head and didn't smash.

 

The protester, who had a carton of eggs with her, was tackled to the floor by security.

 

An elderly lady, Margaret Baxter, was knocked over during the scuffle was helped to her feet by the PM and did not appear to be injured.

 

NSW Police later confirmed the protester had been taken into custody.

 

"My concern about today's incident in Albury was for the older lady who was knocked off her feet," the Prime Minister tweeted.

 

"I helped her up and gave her a hug."

 

"Our farmers have to put up with these same idiots who are invading their farms and their homes."

 

"We will stand up to thuggery whether it's these cowardly activists who have no respect for anyone, or militant unionists standing over small businesses and their employees on work sites."

 

The protester did not answer questions from journalists after being thrown out of the building.

 

In a statement, NSW Police said the egg which was thrown at Mr Morrison actually hit a different woman.

 

The CWA said the protester was not one of their members.

 

Mr Morrison was greeting dozens of CWA members after addressing the organisation's state conference.

 

He appeared unfazed in the minutes after the incident, continuing to greet some of the hundreds of attendees.

 

He later attended a Liberal Party event across the border in Wodonga in the electorate of Indi.

 

NSW Police said no injuries had been reported and that their inquiries were continuing.

 

Ms Baxter said she fell on her hip but was not in pain.

 

"I'd recently had surgery on my stomach so my main concern was holding my stomach to make sure it didn't get hit or someone land on it," she said.

 

"I'm very disappointed that something like that would happen at a CWA meeting but I believe that person was not a CWA member."

 

Speaking from Melbourne, Opposition Leader Bill Shorten the egging was "appalling and disgraceful behaviour".

 

"In Australia we have violence-free elections, people are allowed to protest peacefully but anything approaching violence is unacceptable," he said.

 

"If this protester thinks she will get sympathy or support from me, she couldn't be more wrong."

 

Eggs have become a weapon of choice in Australian politics this year.

 

Queensland senator Fraser Anning had an egg smashed over his head by a Melbourne teenager in March, after he linked Muslim immigration to the Christchurch mosque massacre.

 

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-05-07/scott-morrison-egged-on-federal-election-campaign-trail/11087174