Prime Minister Tony Abbott has signalled sweeping changes to national security, including a tougher stance on who qualifies for residency, citizenship and welfare payments.
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In an extraordinary statement on his official YouTube channel on Sunday, Mr Abbott said there would be no more "benefit of the doubt" for those who might be seeking to harm Australia, and also hinted at tougher enforcement of bail laws in a bid to reset the political agenda and fend off criticism of his leadership.
"It's clear to me that for too long we have given those who might be a threat to our country the benefit of the doubt," Mr Abbott said.
"There's been the benefit of the doubt at our borders, the benefit of the doubt for residency, the benefit of the doubt for citizenship and the benefit of the doubt at Centrelink. And in the courts, there has been bail, when clearly there should have been jail."
Mr Abbott is expected to release the joint government report into the Martin Place siege this week before returning to Parliament next Monday with a beefed up package of security measures.
News Corp have reported that one measure which could be included in the package is the revoking of the citizenship of dual nationals involved in terrorism. Similar measures have been recently been introduced in France and Canada, while Britain has moved to introduce laws that could suspend British citizenship.
Mr Abbott will also press ahead with plans to ban radical Islamist group Hizb ut-Tahrir and controversial changes to mandatory data retention legislation.
The statement was strong on rhetoric but light on detail and was seen by government insiders as an attempt by Mr Abbott to concentrate on a subject that is a strength for the Coalition.
"We are a free and fair nation. But that doesn't mean we should let bad people play us for mugs, and all too often they have. Well, that's going to stop," Mr Abbott said in his statement.
As the statement foreshadowing the security announcement was released by Mr Abbott's office the Prime Minister was speaking to Channel Ten's Andrew Bolt.
Mr Abbott told Mr Bolt his concentration on national security issues last year led him to neglect his backbench.
"I suppose last year I was so focused on economic security issues, on national security issues, that I didn't have enough time to talk to my colleagues," Mr Abbott said.
"This, obviously, was a terrible mistake. It was a terrible failing. It's not something that I'm ever going to repeat."
Later on Sunday Mr Abbott condemned the deaths of people in Denmark during an attack on a free speech forum saying it "only strengthen[ed] our resolve to combat ISIL, or Daesh, and the evil is represents".
"The thoughts of all Australians are with the people of Denmark and, in particular, the family of the victim who lost his life and the police officers injured in this brutal act of terror," Mr Abbott said.
"As with the Charlie Hebdo atrocity in Paris, the Copenhagen attack is an affront to one of our most fundamental values – freedom of speech. We stand with the people and government of Denmark in confronting this cynical attempt to undermine that fundamental right."
Sources said a week away from Parliament would provide an opportunity to change the "national conversation" away from last week's party room meeting in which Mr Abbott survived an attempt by his party room to bring on a leadership spill.
