George Brandis (Queensland, Liberal Party, Attorney-General) Share this | Hansard source

I can. The bill to which I have referred is the latest in a suite of legislation the government has passed or is in the process of dealing with in its comprehensive review of Australia's national security legislation.

It follows the foreign fighters bill, which came into effect yesterday, 1 December, and addressed the most pressing gaps in our counterterrorism legislative framework; those that have the greatest impact on prevention and disruption of domestic terrorist threats. It also follows the National Security Legislation Amendment Bill (No. 1) 2014, which dealt with the powers of our national security agencies.

The foreign fighters bill created a new offence of entering a declared area overseas where terrorist organisations are active and where that area is certified by the Minister for Foreign Affairs. It also created a new offence of advocating terrorism, which will prohibit intentionally counselling, promoting or encouraging terrorism. (Time expired)