The head of counter terrorism policy at the Australian Strategic Policy Institute Jacinta Carol told SBS the Westminster attack on Wednesday show terrorist organisations like the self-proclaimed Islamic State are finding it increasingly difficult to launch coordinated attacks.
“The mechanism put in place in the United Kingdom, as in Australia, have limited the ability of terrorist groups to direct and undertake mass casualty attacks, which is what they want to do,” Ms Carol said.
“Therefore they are resorting to what can we do and typically looking at inspiring attacks.”
Ms Carol, who previously worked in the Department of Defence and the Attorney-General’s Department, said the Australian government usually conducts a review of domestic counter-terrorism measures after major international attacks.
She added that a review after the attack in Nice, France in July 2016 looked specifically at the security of prominent public locations and the potential for vehicle attacks.
“One of the most obvious things to look at is the physical security, hardening security, putting in bollards and screening,” Ms Carol said.
“But the importance isn’t just to try and fortify our lives, it’s to ensure we have a balance between physically hardening those barriers where there is a need and intelligence led prevention."
Londoners light candles during a vigil in Trafalgar Square in London where thousands gathered to remember the victims. Source: EPA
Less threat in Australia than Europe
Australia’s terror alert has been on ‘high’ since 2014.
Multiple security upgrades have been made since then at iconic locations such as Parliament House.
Counter-terrorism expert Lydia Khalil, Director of risk consultancy firm Arcana Partners told SBS the level of risk was lower in Australia than in Europe.
“These types of attacks are possible in Australia, though I’d say we are not dealing with the same kind of scope of the problem as we are in Europe,” she said.
Ms Khalil said the terror threat was continuing to shift away from large coordinated attacks.
“It’s very difficult to pre-empt these (small-scale) attacks and the window from flash to bang is getting much narrower,” she said.
“There is not a lot of planning involved, there are not many indicators involved, so it is quite a difficult task for security authorities.”
She added while it was always important to undertake security reviews it was important not to exaggerate the threat or close off society as a result.
“We have to balance security against the freedom of movement and the openness of our society. And that’s always a toss-up that an open society like Australia is going to have to deal with,” she said.
"Unless we are prepared to live in a society with total lock down, we do have to be equipped to live in a society with some level of risk."
She said Australian authorities have been correct to focus on identifying at-risk members of the community and preventing incidents of violence before they occur.
"There is a duty to prevent the markers of radicalisation before the violence happens. So that's social services, working with various young people and making sure that our own societies are cohesive and inclusive enough so those more extreme ideologies don’t tend to take hold".
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