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Prime Minister Tony Abbott has today detailed the government's plan to reduce the risk of home-grown terrorism.
Speaking in Melbourne today, Mr Abbott announced $64 million would go security agencies and community groups.
Mr Abbott said the new measures would address the issue of home-grown terrorism at a community level.
"Obviously we are boosting our security services generally," he said. "We have got new laws to ensure that people who are coming back from terrorist activity in the Middle East can be arrested and detained."
"It's also important, though, that we engage with the community so that everyone understands that the enemy here is terrorism."
Last month, the government announced a range of new measures to counter what it described as a heightened concern about terrorism.
Mr Abbott said the measures aimed at “targeting extremism,” rather than any particular religion or community group.
The government believes that there are at least 60 Australians fighting with the Islamic State (IS) in Iraq and Syria.
"We need to understand that this is a very, very significant issue and it is more of an issue today than it was a couple of years ago because of the unfolding disaster in northern Iraq and eastern Syria," he said.
"(IS) is a movement, as we have seen on our TV screens and on the front pages of our newspapers, of utter ferocity, medieval barbarism, that is how serious and dangerous this movement is."
"Because of the Australians who are involved with this movement, what might otherwise be a problem in a far-away country is a problem for us."
The package also includes $6.2 million to establish a new Australian Federal Police Community Diversion and Monitoring Team to target returning foreign fighters and their supporters.
Some $32.7 million will go toward a multi-agency national disruption group to investigate and disrupt foreign fighters and their supporters.
University of New South Wales law professor George Williams told SBS he thought the new measures went too far but said it was good that something was being done at a community level.
"I think it's really important we do see money being spent on community engagement programs,” he said.
"One of the most important defences we have against terrorism is social cohesion. It's particularly important communities feel prepared to report suspicious or problematic behaviour to authorities or intelligence agencies - but to do that, requires trust.
"There is always a danger with enacting new terror laws, they tend to come as a reaction to catastrophic events or violent images on TV. It's not surprising in those circumstances we see very strong responses from to government. Unfortunately what we are seeing is a reaction to those events that I think, goes further than what the government can justify."
Tony Abbott today said the best defence against radicalisation was "well informed and well equipped" families and communities.
"We want to stop radicalised youngsters from leaving this country to join terrorist groups overseas, we want to work with our allies and partners to try to monitor them while they are overseas," Mr Abbott said.
"We want to be able to charge them and jail them where they have been working with terrorist groups overseas."
Earlier this month, Foreign Minister Julie Bishop said preventing Australian citizens from becoming involved in terrorist activities was one of Australia's highest national security priorities.
"We are deeply concerned this security challenge will mean that Australian citizens fighting in these conflicts overseas will return to this country as hardened home-grown terrorists who may use the experiences and skills they have gained to carry out attacks in this country," she said.
- With AAP
