Premier Mike Baird wrote to then Prime Minister Tony Abbott seeking key changes to Commonwealth anti-terrorism laws six weeks before the killing of a police accountant at Parramatta by a radicalised teenager, but received no response.
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Mr Baird wrote to Mr Abbott on August 24 calling for a significant increase in the time a terrorism suspect may be detained without charge and can be questioned by police, under the Commonwealth crimes act.
But Mr Baird did not receive a response from Mr Abbott to the letter, sources have confirmed, before he was deposed as Prime Minister by Malcolm Turnbull three weeks later, on September 13.
It can be revealed that the October 2 killing of police accountant Curtis Cheng by radicalised 15-year-old Farhad Jabar outside Parramatta police headquarters prompted Mr Baird to renew his plea in a letter to Mr Turnbull last week.
Fairfax Media has confirmed the letter was personally handed to Mr Turnbull last Wednesday, not sent on Monday as has been widely reported.
The second letter raised the detention and questioning period but also sought a reduction in the age threshold for control orders against terrorism suspects from 16 to 14.
Control orders can be used to restrict the movements, contact and activities of terrorism suspects and also allow for their monitoring.
The letter is understood to have acknowledged ongoing consultation between the state and federal governments on changes to control orders.
But it said that in light of Mr Cheng's killing there was an urgent need to speed up legislative changes before a proposed 2016 start date.
There is no suggestion that had Mr Abbott responded to Mr Baird's initial letter that the Parramatta tragedy could have been avoided, as police have said Jabar was not on their radar.
But the revelation goes some way to explaining why Mr Baird chose to go public with his plea to Mr Turnbull via the media on Monday and only gave Mr Turnbull's office a few hours' notice of his intentions.
Mr Baird's disclosure of the letter to media organisations prompted attorney-general George Brandis on Monday night to announce the federal government would seek to legislate to reduce the age threshold for control orders from 16 to 14.
But Mr Brandis has rejected the calls to increase the period for which terrorism suspect may be detained without charge from up to eight days to up to 28 days.
Mr Brandis has said such a change to Commonwealth law would be unconstitutional, prompting Mr Baird to flag possibly legislating at a state level.
The move to lower the age for control orders has been criticised by civil liberties groups and its efficacy questioned by Australia's first Independent National Security Legislation Monitor, Bret Walker, SC.
Mr Abbott has been approached for a response.