$1.2 billion extra to fight terrorism in Federal Budget
GLOBAL extremism has prompted the government to devote an extra $1.2 billion to national security and another more cash to fight online terror propaganda.
THE spectre of global extremism has prompted the government to devote an extra $1.2 billion to national security this year.
The money includes a $450 million boost for intelligence gathering with an extra $296 million for the overseas spooks at the Australian Secret Intelligence Service (ASIS) and the domestic spies at ASIO.
The extra money includes $295.8 million over six years to strengthen ASIS including a major upgrade of its computer systems.
However funding for the Australian Federal Police (AFP) falls by almost $40 million next year including $24 million in savings measures.
The remaining $750 million falls in the defence portfolio for expanded operations in the world’s terrorist nurseries in Afghanistan, Iraq and across the Middle East.
The controversial plan to access and store metadata has been funded to the tune of $131 million over three years.
The money will assist telcos to retain “limited” metadata for up to two years.
Attorney General George Brandis said that telecommunications data played a key role in almost every national security and serious criminal investigation.
The government says it is monitoring about 400 “high risk” terrorist threats up from about 200 last year.
Taxpayers will cough up another $22 million over four years to counter the online propaganda of groups such as the Daesh “death cult” or ISIS that are attracting Australian teenagers to their deadly cause.
“The program seeks to reduce the ability of terrorist groups to nurture extremists through the internet and social media,” the budget papers say.
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