KEY public bodies across Scotland, England and Wales will be legally required to take action to stop people being drawn into terrorism, under new rules introduced from today.

The measures came into force as the first of the 30 British tourists shot dead in the Tunisian beach massacre are expected to be returned to their loved ones. Their families had last seen them before they flew off on holidays to the resort of Sousse.

The death toll has risen to 22. Victims includw James McQuire, 66, and his wife Anne, 63, from Cumbernauld, and Billy Graham, 51, and his wife Lisa, 50, from Bankfoot, Perthshire. Eight others are expected to be from the UK.

First Minister Nicola Sturgeon sent her "deepest condolences" to their families and assured them the government and other agencies, including the police, would do everything possible to help with their return to Scotland.

As part of the UK Government's One Nation strategy, a law passed earlier this year now places councils, schools, prisons, health bodies, the police and a a raft of other public institutions under a legal obligation to identify and report those vulnerable to radicalisation.

The so-called Prevent Duty, introduced as part of the 2015 Counter-Terrorism and Security Act, will also cover universities and colleges but will only begin for these institutions once "further guidance on extremist speakers has been published".

Earlier this year a row broke out over the rule's application to universities and colleges. In what was said to have been one of the worst rows of the Lib-Con Coalition, Nick Clegg, the then Deputy Prime Minister, vetoed the Tory plan for higher education establishments, believing the move aimed at preventing radical speakers brainwashing impressionable students would erode "free speech".

But the Conservatives are keen to press ahead with the plan for universities and colleges once the further guidance is made clear.

The counter-radicalisation move comes just days after the Tunisia terror attack that claimed 38 lives, including those of 30 Britons, and which was perpertrated by 23-year-old student,Seifeddine Rezgui, who it is thought was radicalised and trained by an Islamic State cell based in Libya. He was shot dead after the attacks.

"We have seen all too starkly and tragically the dangers of radicalisation and the devastating impact it can have on individuals, families and communities," said John Hayes, the Security Minister.

"The new Prevent Duty is about protecting people from the poisonous and pernicious influence of extremist ideas that are used to legitimise terrorism."

He added: "Protecting those who are vulnerable and at risk of radicalisation is a job for all of us. The new duty will make sure key bodies across the country play their part and work in partnership as part of our One Nation approach to bring the country together to tackle extremism."

A Scottish Government spokesman said: "The responsibility to tackle violent extremism is one we all share. The most important challenge for us all is to work towards creating cohesive and resilient communities within which the terrorist messages will not resonate."

But Christine Blower of the National Union of Teachers said the jury was out on whether extra legal requirements were the most effective way to prevent young people from radicalisation and claimed the Prevent programme was already "causing significant nervousness and confusion among teachers".

The new guidance says:

*local authorities should consider whether publicly available IT equipment should use filtering to limit access to terrorist and extremist material;

*schools should have "robust safeguarding policies in place to identify children at risk and intervene as appropriate" and will be expected to protect children from terrorist and extremist material when accessing the Internet at school and

*universities will be expected to carry out a risk assessment for their institution, saying where and how their students might be at risk of being drawn into terrorism.