P.M. FUNDS NATIONAL TERROR INITIATIVES

Prime Minister John Howard today announced funding for a new counterterrorsm package.

The funding will support measures agreed upon between the Federal Government and the nations' State Premiers.

Following today's meeting of the Council of Australian Governments’ meeting (COAG) to discuss national counter-terrorism arrangements Mr Howard announced $40 million in additional funding for a range of measures "to deliver increased safety and security to all Australians."

These measures are in addition to the Government’s recent commitment of $200 million to further tighten security at Australia’s major airports.

Initiatives announced today include:

• $17.3 million over five years to establish an Australian Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear Data Centre located within the Australian Federal Police (AFP);
• $2.4 million over five years to support the establishment of a Chemical Warfare Agents Laboratory Network, which will provide a network of laboratories across Australia for the analysis of chemical agents;
• $9.2 million over four years for the enhancement of Australia’s national counter-terrorism exercise regime - the enhanced programme will provide a greater focus on exercising Australia’s ability to manage mass casualty incidents, particularly in places such as major city precincts and transport hubs;
• $1.3 million over four years to support the development of a national strategy to explain to the public, through a set of clear, concise messages, the arrangements set out in the National Counter-Terrorism Plan and improved, centralised communication with the media during a crisis;
• $5.9 million in 2005-06 to support the development of a national action plan to build on the principles agreed at my recent meeting with Islamic community leaders and to undertake a range of related work including Muslim community liaison, community partnership projects, a national youth summit and leadership and media training;
• $1 million over three years for Commonwealth aspects of the implementation of the National Counter-Terrorism Committee’s review of urban mass passenger surface transport security arrangements; and
• $700,000 to assist Commonwealth participation in the National Counter-Terrorism Committee review of closed circuit television capability and development of a national code of practice.
• Further, the COAG has agreed to establish a unified policing model at each of the 11 counter-terrorism first response (CTFR) airports including: an Airport Police Commander, a dedicated Joint Intelligence Group, a CTFR capability and a permanent community policing presence, and at each of the major international airports (Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth and Adelaide), a Joint Airport Investigation Team.

The Australian Government has agreed to fully fund under the unified model a full-time community policing presence of AFP officers wearing AFP uniforms and under AFP command at all major Australian airports, with officers seconded or recruited from State and Territory police forces. The funding details for this initiative will be settled and announced shortly.

The COAG communiqué can be found at: www.coag.gov

Australian Lawyers Alliance president Richard Faulks told ABC News that the laws are totalitarian and un-Australian.

"Depending on what the final version is, I think it is a retrograde step, and one that we didn't need," Mr Faulks said.

"Australians value their freedom and even though everyone is concerned about terrorism and rightly so, there are steps that can be taken that are still consistent with proper safeguards which are part of our everyday life."

The union for the Australian Federal Police (AFP) has told the ABC that it does not have enough officers to take on the new airport security functions approved today.

Spokesman Jim Torr said that more than 600 employees have been redeployed to counter-terrorism functions since the September 11 terrorist attacks.

"The AFP has to grow proportionately to the scope of the increase of its role," he said.

South Australian Premier Mike Rann told the Financial Review he was confident the leaders would convince Mr Howard to include a sunset clause as part of the package. "I think that a sunset clause after 10 years would be a smart thing."

He said that terrorism was just another word for mass murder, and the new laws should reflect the seriousness of the crime.