SECURITY checks are being intensified at the UK's borders in the wake of the Brussels terror attacks, Theresa May has said.

The Home Secretary disclosed the move as she set out a number of precautionary measures taken "to ensure public safety and provide public reassurance" following the atrocity in the Belgian capital.

She told MPs: "Border Force is carrying out more intensive checks at the UK border including greater searching of vehicles, the use of search dogs and greater numbers of Border Force officers on duty."

Police forces have already confirmed that additional officers have been deployed to patrol at key locations and on the transport network.

Mrs May said full details of the "appalling" attacks are not yet known and described the situation as "fast-moving".

She said she was aware of reports that Islamic State (IS) - which she referred to as Daesh - has claimed responsibility.

The Home Secretary told the Commons Home Affairs committee: "We stand together against the terrorists and they will not win."

British and Belgian authorities work closely on security matters and "share intelligence routinely", she said.

Mrs May said that after the attacks in Paris in November, police and intelligence service resources were deployed to Belgium in support of the investigations into the attackers which resulted in the arrest of fugitive Salah Abdeslam last week.

The threat level in the UK remains under constant review but has not changed, she told the committee.

It currently stands at severe, indicating that an attack is seen as "highly likely".

Mrs May said: "I would urge everyone to remain alert but not alarmed."

She added: "I would like to reassure this committee and the public that while we will know more in the coming days and hours, we are doing everything we can to help the Belgian authorities, to work with our international partners and of course to keep people in this country safe and secure."

Mrs May said police and security services work with counterparts in Europe and around the world.

"The terrorists know no boundaries," she said.

"The terrorists will perpetrate their appalling brutality, they will try to do it wherever they wish to, and we must make sure that we are cooperating in order to stop that."