Counter-terrorism strategy
(CONTEST) 2023
Details
CONTEST is the UK’s counter-terrorism strategy.
It’s based on 4 themes:
- prevent: to stop people becoming terrorists or supporting
terrorism
- pursue: to stop terrorist attacks happening
- protect: to strengthen our protection against a terrorist
attack
- prepare: to minimise the impact of a terrorist attack
Since the 2018 version of
CONTEST, counter-terrorism efforts by the UK and allies have
largely been successful in reducing risk by suppressing the most
serious terrorist threats.
We made major updates to the strategy to deal with the changing
threat from terrorism, which is now less predictable and harder
to detect and investigate.
Written
statement
Home Secretary (): The first duty of
this government is to keep the United Kingdom and its people
safe. I am therefore pleased to today publish an updated version
of CONTEST, the United Kingdom’s Strategy for Countering
Terrorism. The strategy has been laid before Parliament as a
Command Paper (CP 903), and copies are available in the Vote
Office and on GOV.UK.
This year marks 20 years since we launched CONTEST. The core
framework that underpins the strategy – Prevent, Pursue, Protect
and Prepare – has stood the test of time and remains a strong
foundation on which to base our counter-terrorism efforts.
However, the threat we face from terrorism is enduring and
evolving and it is right that we update our strategy to stay
ahead. I have already announced an overhaul of the Prevent pillar
in response to the Independent Review of Prevent, to ensure that
it recognises the central role of ideology in encouraging people
to turn towards extremism and that Islamism remains our greatest
threat. Since the last version of CONTEST was published in 2018,
9 terrorist attacks have been declared in the UK, in which 6
people died and 20 people were injured. Overseas, 24 UK nationals
have been killed in 11 terrorist attacks. The majority of these
attacks were Islamist in nature. We judge that the risk from
terrorism is rising, and we must do everything within our power
to reduce it.
We must also review our counter-terrorism efforts in response to
external scrutiny; since 2018 there have been numerous inquests,
inquiries, reviews, and exercises which have helped us learn
lessons and improve our counter-terrorism system. Most recently
we have received and are implementing recommendations from the
Independent Review of Prevent and the Manchester Arena Inquiry.
The Home Office has updated CONTEST via comprehensive
evidence-gathering and thorough consultation. This has included
input and challenge from other government departments, devolved
administrations, the police, the security and intelligence
agencies, frontline practitioners, independent advisors and
commissioners including the Commission for Countering Extremism,
victims of terrorism and their families, the private sector,
academia, and our international partners and allies.
The strategy sets out a need to respond to a domestic terrorist
threat which is less predictable and harder to detect and
investigate, a persistent and evolving threat from Islamist
groups overseas, and an operating environment where accelerating
advances in technology provide both opportunity and risk to our
counter-terrorism efforts. It also includes a greater focus on
the pivotal role of ideology in encouraging extremism.
In response, building on its established foundations, the updated
version of CONTEST sets out how we will place greater focus on
using all the levers of the state to identify and intervene
against terrorists, build critical partnerships with the private
sector and international allies to keep the public safe, and
harness the opportunities presented by new technology.
Through this updated strategy, and by taking a more agile,
integrated and aligned approach, we will do everything within our
power to keep the public safe.
