An airstrike by the US-led coalition in Kobani, Syria as fighting intensified between Syrian Kurds and the militants of Islamic State group at the Turkey-Syria border. Photo / AP
The Security Intelligence Service, the country's domestic spying agency, looks set to gain greater surveillance powers in a quickfire overhaul of terrorism laws despite Prime Minister John Key's acknowledgement of a "low" risk to this country.
Mr Key's new Cabinet met for the first time yesterday, and featuring on the
agenda was the rubber-stamping of an immediate review of anti-terror laws, primarily the Terrorism Suppression Act, which was hastily put in place after the 2001 World Trade Centre attacks.
Confirming the review he has now been discussing for several days, Mr Key disclosed New Zealand's national threat level for the first time, saying it had recently been raised from "very low" to "low". That implies the threat of a terrorist attack is now seen as "possible but not expected".
It has been raised to that only once before - temporarily during the 2011 Rugby World Cup. Australia's level on the same scale is "high", suggesting a terror attack there is likely.
Mr Key has talked about potential threats in recent days, even going so far as to caution that New Zealand was not immune from attacks such as this month's alleged plot by an extremist group to behead random members of the Australian public.
