The threat of terrorism is now so serious that the traditional debate between civil liberties and the protection of society is "redundant", Liberal MP Andrew Nikolic has said.

Mr Nikolic, one of the Liberals' most vocal national security hawks and a member of the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Intelligence and Security, called on Tuesday night for a fundamental shift in the national security debate away from the individual and towards the majority.

"The nature of the new security order today is so critical as to make redundant the all-to-familiar and orthodox war of words between dissenting factions of our thankfully open society," he said during a parliamentary debate on national security.

"This usually comes down to those who say they are merely defending human rights in objecting to counter-terrorism measures. But in doing so they are making life even more difficult for those charged with the responsibility of actually protecting these same rights for all Australians while at the same time keeping us safe."