the Terrorism Act
/ðə ˈterərɪzəm ækt/
/ðə ˈterərɪzəm ækt/
- a law introduced in Britain in 2000 which made certain groups illegal, gave the police extra powers to investigate terrorists and created some new criminal offences related to terrorism. Changes were made to it by the Anti-terrorism, Crime and Security Act of 2001. A second Terrorism Act in 2006 added new offences, gave new powers to the police and increased the time a person suspected of terrorism may be held by the police from 14 to 28 days. In 2008 the government introduced a Counter-Terrorism Bill which included another increase to 42 days but this change was not approved by Parliament. The Counter-Terrorism and Security Act of 2015 gave the police extra powers to investigate the online activities of people suspected of terrorism.