International Law

Heather Brooke - The Truth about CCTV - well researched article

Spy Blog started out from concerns about the abuse of the rapidly improving technology of CCTV surveillance cameras, especially those encroaching on public spaces.

This started out under John Major's Conservative government, but the "We Must Be Seen To Be Doing Something, So Let's Throw Public Money At A Possible Technological Magic Fix" attitude really festered, when the arrogantly self-deluded, yet technologically incompetent, Labour politicians got control of the Home Office under Tony Blair and Gordon Brown.

Investigative journalist and author Heather Brooke, whose Freedom of Information Act requests led to the revelations of the MPs expenses scandals, has written a meticulously researched article for Wired magazine, Investigation: A sharp focus on CCTV which she has re-published on her own blog Article: The Truth about CCTV

Please read it in full.

It is very noticeable that no Chief Constable has ever decided that it is a better use of public money, to give up the funding of Police computers, forensics laboratories, vehicles radios or the salaries of Police Constables or civilian staff etc. in order to fund public CCTV surveillance schemes, out of their own policing budgets.

The Conservative - Liberal Democrat coalition government has promised

Further regulation of CCTV.

We will await any such proposals with interest.

Full post as published by Spy Blog on May 18, 2010 (boomark / email).