Speaker says Australian parliament safe

Speaker Bronwyn Bishop has reassured Australian politicians they are safe in Parliament House, following an attack on Canada's parliament.

A gunman killed a soldier guarding an Ottawa war memorial before storming into the halls of parliament. He was shot dead.

Mrs Bishop opened the sitting of the House of Representatives on Thursday with a statement outlining the security arrangements in Canberra.

"As a result of the enhanced security arrangements we have already put in place, the president (of the Senate) and I are confident based on security agency advice that the parliament is a safe environment," she said.

Security was boosted in September - including the introduction of long-armed weapons - "to protect us against threats of this very nature", she said.

Tighter security measures were in place on Thursday.

"Our parliament and its perimeter are very different to the designs of the Canadian parliament," she said.

"We have a number of layers of security measures designed to protect building occupants."

Mrs Bishop said the images of members barricading themselves in the chamber in Canadian parliament were concerning, but could not be replicated here.

"The range of armed response, security and lockdown arrangements that we have in place means this type of action will not be necessary here," she said.

However, she reminded staff to be vigilant and to report any suspicious behaviour.