Counter-Terrorism and Border Security Bill given Royal Assent

The Counter-Terrorism and Border Security Act 2019 has been given Royal Assent, giving the UK greater powers to crackdown on hostile state activity.

The new law also ensures sentencing for certain terrorism offences can properly reflect the severity of the crimes, as well as preventing re-offending and disrupting terrorist activity more rapidly.

The act also updates existing counter-terrorism legislation to reflect digital changes including the way in which people view content online. It also reflects the speed at which terrorism plots develop.

Home Secretary, Sajid Javid, said: "The Counter-Terrorism and Border Security Act gives the police the powers they need to disrupt plots and punish those who seek to do us harm."

The act includes a new power to stop, question, search and detain an individual at a port or border area to determine whether they are, or have been, involved in hostile state activity.

It will make it an offence to enter or remain in an area outside the United Kingdom that has been designated by the Home Secretary if it is necessary for protecting the public from terrorism.

The act updates the offence of obtaining information likely to be useful to a terrorist to cover material that is only viewed or streamed, rather than downloaded to form a permanent record.

The new law also increases to the maximum penalty for certain preparatory terrorism offences to 15 years’ imprisonment, as well as extending the offence of inviting support for a proscribed organisation.

There will also be a requirement for terrorist offenders to provide additional information to the police in line with what registered sex offenders must provide.

An independent review of Prevent, the government’s strategy for supporting those vulnerable to radicalisation, will also take place.