Trent Zimmerman (North Sydney, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister for Foreign Affairs. Will the minister update the House on what the government is doing to ensure the safety of Australians at home and abroad?

Ms Julie Bishop (Curtin, Liberal Party, Minister for Foreign Affairs) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the member for North Sydney for his question. The Australian government condemns in the strongest possible way the horrific attack in Manchester that was calculated to kill innocent young people. While we have no information to suggest that any Australians were among those killed or injured, it will be some time before all the victims are identified.

We should remember that around one million Australians visit the United Kingdom each year and that, at any one time, there are about 130,000 Australians resident in the United Kingdom. I can confirm that the Australian government has updated our travel advice for the United Kingdom. I will quote from that advice:

… the UK Government has increased the UK's domestic threat level to 'Critical' (the highest of the UK's five domestic threat levels). UK Prime Minister May has also announced that armed soldiers will be deployed in UK cities to assist police with security. Continue to avoid the area surrounding the Manchester Arena and anticipate significant transport delays in the Manchester area. Expect an increased police and security presence across the UK. Be vigilant about your personal security, monitor the media and follow local authorities' instructions (Safety and security). In light of the UK's increase to its threat level, we now advise you to exercise a high degree of caution in the United Kingdom.

I can advise the House that the threat assessment means not only is an attack considered highly likely but a further attack may be imminent.

We are in contact with British authorities who have confirmed that a police investigation continues to find all the perpetrators who may have been involved in this attack. There is a concern that this attack was the work of a wider terrorist cell with links outside the United Kingdom. As the Prime Minister said, the Australian government will do all that we can to keep Australians safe at home and abroad. Our security measures are under constant review.

We have boosted our counter-terrorism efforts to protect Australians at home and abroad, with an additional $550 million in this most recent budget. We have cancelled or refused to issue passports for over 205 Australian citizens who seek to travel to the Middle East to support or work with terrorist organisations, including ISIS. There are 200 Australians under active investigation for seeking to support terrorist organisations. We are unrelenting in our efforts to seek out those who wish to do us harm.