Suspect linked to cargo bomb plot arrested

The Government will invest further in stopping terrorists overseas before they can target Britain, Home Secretary Theresa May said today.

Mrs May said it was highly likely British extremists "trained and hardened on the streets of Mogadishu" may try to return to commit mass murder in London.

She revealed an alleged member of al-Qa'ida in the Arabian Peninsula (Aqap) was arrested in Britain earlier this year and is accused of planning a terrorist attack in this country.

The Islamic terrorist group has been widely blamed for the printer bombs found on United States-bound cargo aircraft at East Midlands Airport and in Dubai last Friday.

Speaking at the Royal United Services Institute (Rusi) in Whitehall, Mrs May said the Government's review of its counter-terrorism strategy will include "significant changes" leading to a "much better balance".

She said: "Where necessary we will enhance our protective security measures; we will invest in conflict prevention and stopping terrorist plots overseas; we will refocus the strategy for preventing radicalisation in the UK; and we will strike a better balance between our liberties and our security.

"There is much good work under way to tackle the terrorist threat. But where there needs to be change I will not be afraid to make it."

"I want an approach which is more targeted against extremist individuals, but that impacts much less on the good people of our communities. I want an approach which allows people to enjoy their liberty in safety and security.

"And I want an approach that is effective in dealing with an evolving threat. That is what we will deliver."

Delivering her first major speech on the subject, the Home Secretary said the success of domestic counter-terrorism work depended on international collaboration and co-operation.

She said the investigation of terrorist plots would "almost always" lead overseas and highlighted the threat of trained radicals travelling from Somalia and tribal areas of Pakistan.

Mrs May said Britain could not "entirely eliminate" the threat of an attack, but could reduce the risk.

She said the Labour administration did not "get the balance right" on often invasive measures such as control orders, pre-charge detention and other counter-terrorism powers.

But Mrs May added: "I don't believe the previous government got the balance right, but let me be clear: I will do absolutely nothing which will put at risk Britain's national security."

The Home Secretary said programmes to deter people from engaging with terrorism, called the Prevent strategy, were here to stay, but a new approach to dealing with Britain's Muslim communities was needed.

She said: "We want to increase the participation of everyone in our society. And participating in society also means standing up against the extremists who would seek to divide us."

Assistant commissioner John Yates, of the Metropolitan Police, said: "These attempts clearly show the threat is very real and very much upon us. We may never totally eliminate the threat."

The senior officer, who is responsible for counter-terrorism operations, said police and the security services often felt that a 100% success rate was expected of them.

He said: "In recognising this, we can perhaps therefore only aim to reduce the risk and it is in this collective effort we must reconcile how and what we do with what the public expects of us in terms of their civil liberties.

"We must not do the terrorists' jobs for them, either by unduly increasing the fear of terror itself or by responding to the threat in a way that encroaches unnecessarily on freedoms."

Referring to the arrest of the subject, Mrs May said: "An Aqap (al-Qa'ida in the Arabian Peninsula) associate was arrested here earlier this year.

"He is alleged to have been planning a terrorist attack in this country. Threats such as these are likely to continue."