Australia is tightening its anti-terror laws with opposition Labor yesterday backing government proposals to detain suspects for longer and ban anyone from making money out of training with terror groups.

Prime Minister John Howard, who is lagging in opinion polls ahead of an election expected in October or November, put the political spotlight back on national security on Monday at the start of parliament's final week before the May budget.

?This is a long struggle and it is struggle that needs different techniques. Particularly in the wake of the Madrid bombings, we do not want to be sending signals to anybody that there's any weakening of resolve,? Howard told Australian radio.

Australia, a close US ally, has never had a major terror attack on its homesoil but 88 Australians were among 202 killed in bombings on the neighbouring Indonesian island of Bali in 2002.

The government wants police to be allowed to hold people for questioning about terror activities for 24 hours from 12 hours and to ban people who trained with terror groups from making money by writing books or selling their story.

The proposals, which cabinet has approved and are set to go before parliament this week, will also widen existing laws so it is not only an offence to be a member of a listed terror group but a member of any group the government proved had terror links.

The eight-year-old government has already announced an extra A$400 million ($296 million) will be earmarked in the May 11 budget for intelligence agencies. Cabinet approved 150 more staff at the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation, the country's main spy agency.

Howard said the government had decided to produce a white paper to analyse the ?terrorist threat? in the next few months, keeping security high on the agenda before the election.

Centre-left Labor said it would back the government's proposals to beef up anti-terror laws but questioned why the government had waited so long to commission a white paper. ?Frankly in the lead-up to a federal election, and coming so long after these major shocks of international terrorism around the world and to Australia, it strikes us as (opportunistic),? Labor spokesman Kevin Rudd told reporters.

Howard, 64, reknowned for his comebacks from near political oblivion, has made national security his government's domain, boosting security spending by A$3 billion ($2 billion) since 2001 and sending troops to the US-led wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. But Labor has surged in popularity this year under new leader Mark Latham, 43, whose youthful appeal has won over voters, with the latest Reuters Poll Trend that averages political polls showing Labor at 45.5 per cent to the government's 40 per cent.