Terror threat level raised to ‘severe’

The Home Secretary Priti Patel has just announced that the terror threat level has been raised to 'severe' meaning that another attack is now considered 'highly likely'. The move comes after yesterday's explosion in Liverpool was declared to be a 'terrorist incident'.

Speaking after a Cobra meeting, Patel confirmed that the Joint Terrorism Analysis Centre had raised the threat level following the Liverpool attack. 

📺 WATCH: Shocking moment David Perry’s taxi explodes, but he escapes

More here 👉 https://t.co/PEsyfKDH6p pic.twitter.com/3UnebFgz1Y

— The Spectator (@spectator) November 15, 2021

The Home Secretary said that the decision had been taken because two terror attacks had been confirmed in the last month, the former being the murder of MP Sir David Amess. Patel told reporters: 

“The Prime Minister has this afternoon just chaired a Cobra meeting and I attended that meeting too — and the points to note from that meeting is that, first of all, the [Liverpool] incident has been declared as a terrorist incident, the police have now declared that. But, secondly, the Joint Terrorism Analysis Centre, JTAC, are now increasing the United Kingdom's threat level from substantial to severe.

And there is a reason for that, and that reason is because what we saw yesterday is the second incident in a month.

Now, of course that means we continue to work with our world class security, intelligence and policing services — representatives from those agencies. There is a live investigation taking place right now, they will need the time, the space, to do the work that they are doing in terms of investigating the incident.

But of course, we as a government, I as Home Secretary, continue to work with everyone when it comes to the security of our country and making sure that we are taking all the necessary steps required.

JTAC is based within the MI5 building and is made of security officials, government advisers and police representatives.  The terror threat level was lowered in February after the Home Secretary said there had been a 'significant reduction' in the level of terrorist activity across Europe. 

The threat level is now at the second-highest rating, just below 'critical' meaning 'an attack is highly likely in the near future'.