Raised Terror Threat Prompts Government Talks

New measures to tackle the threat of British extremists will be the subject of discussions taking place this weekend between David Cameron and Nick Clegg.

The Prime Minister will announce the plans in the House of Commons on Monday, following the raising of the terror threat to the UK from substantial to severe.

Mr Cameron is expected to outline plans for extra powers after saying there were "gaps in our armoury" which needed to be filled.

But Labour leader Ed Miliband said the Government should take tougher action to stop young Britons being drawn to extremist ideology and prevent would-be jihadis travelling to join Islamic State (IS) fighters in Iraq and Syria.

He suggested a programme of de-radicalisation for those involved on the fringes of IS and called for ministers to revisit the decision to scrap control orders for terror suspects.

Writing in The Independent, Mr Miliband advocates a "multilateral alliance" combining political, diplomatic and humanitarian action to combat the "perverted mission" of IS.

"Such action must include an overhaul of the Home Office Prevent programme to equip communities with the tools to stop young people being sucked into extremist ideology," he said.

"We should also do more to prevent potential fighters from travelling to the region, and promote an effective, mandatory programme of de-radicalisation for anyone who is drawn into the fringes of extremism in Syria and Iraq."

He pointed to concerns raised by David Anderson, the independent reviewer of counter-terrorism legislation, who wants stronger rules to restrict the movements of people subject to terrorism prevention and investigation measures (Tpims).

Mr Miliband said: "For the most serious and high-risk cases, as the independent reviewer on terrorism has recommended, the Government should strengthen existing powers, including revisiting the case for control orders."

Mr Cameron has insisted there will be no "knee-jerk response" to the events in the Middle East, and said people should continue to "go about our daily lives in our normal way".

But as the terrorist threat to the UK was raised, he warned that extremism in Iraq and Syria posed a greater danger to Britain than al Qaida.

The PM said police and intelligence officials had been concerned for months about the threat to the UK posed by British jihadis returning to the home after travelling to the two war-torn countries