The No CCTV blog has moved

This blog has now moved to http://www.no-cctv.org.uk/news.asp

In wake of surveillance report – No CCTV calls for halt in CCTV expansion

The Home Affairs committee today published it’s ‘A Surveillance Society?’ report. Campaign group No CCTV calls on decision makers to halt the proliferation of surveillance cameras in the UK in light of the overwhelming evidence that they do not work and are an unnecessary intrusion into the lives of law abiding citizens.

The report points out that: “Loss of privacy through excessive surveillance erodes trust between the individual and the Government and can change the nature of the relationship between citizen and state.” [Summary p5]

The committee recommends that: “The Home Office should ensure that any extension of the use of camera surveillance is justified by evidence of its effectiveness for its intended purpose, and that its function and operation are understood by the public.” [Ground rules for Government p7]. However the report repeatedly references the lack of evidence of the effectiveness of CCTV:

• The Minister of State for Security, Counter-terrorism, Crime and Policing, Rt Hon Tony McNulty MP shared this view. He acknowledged a paucity of evidence on the effectiveness of camera surveillance in the prevention of crime but was convinced of its value:
  • Can I point to a definitive national study that quantifies in any way its success as a deterrent? No, I cannot [...]
• [Report, paragraph 208]

The report recommends that:

• Under camera surveillance in public spaces, individuals have very little control over whether or not their images and movements are captured and over how they are stored and used. This lack of choice intensifies the obligation on camera operators and regulators to behave responsibly and to deploy surveillance technology only where it is of proven benefit in the fight against crime and where this benefit outweighs any detrimental effect on individual liberty.
• [Report, paragraph 221]

Since the inquiry showed that there is no proven benefit in the fight against crime we believe that local authorities and the police should cease the expansion of CCTV in the UK and begin to remove the existing cameras. This would return some much needed trust into our society, reduce public expenditure and claw back some civil liberties for citizens of the UK.

We contend that better community reduces crime, technology does not.

Read our full press release at http://www.no-cctv.org.uk/press/press_release_3.pdf

UK surveillance sharing

The Inquirer reports that:

Under the authorisation signed last July 4 by Jacqui Smith, video feeds and still images captured from roadside TV cameras, along with personal data derived from them, can be transmitted out of the UK to countries such as the US, that are outside the European Economic Area.

No CCTV has consistently warned that local decisions can have huge implications for the civil liberties of UK citizens. This latest revelation is a stark reminder of the repsonsibility that local politicians and decision makers have.

Oxford East Area parliament delay decision once more

On Wednesday (23rd April) the Oxford East Area Parliament once again discussed proposals for CCTV on the Cowley Road. The committee was presented with a report of the East Area Parliament CCTV subgroup as well as a report prepared by Optimum Security Services Ltd entitled “Cowley Road Report and Budgetary Costings for 4 Cameras”.

No CCTV spoke at the meeting and later issued a press release summarising their response to the latest developments. Points raised include:

• The proposed four camera scheme put to the meeting had many similarities with the plan prepared by Optimum Security in November 2006 – most notably all cameras being in line of sight of each other. This would allow people to be tracked all the way along the Cowley Road.
• No mention was made in the progress report of a one year trial of the cameras which was previously agreed as a condition of installation. The councillors therefore delayed their final decision until it was agreed that cameras would only be installed on a trial basis.
• Since our Interim Report into the proposals for CCTV on the Cowley Road was published in November 2007 even more evidence has come to light that shows that CCTV is not an effective crime-fighting tool. Sources of this new evidence include the two ongoing parliamentary inquiries into surveillance in the UK.
• The Progress Report states that there are no safety concerns in relation to the wireless camera technology. The report’s authors base this position on a May 2006 document produced by the World Health Organisation. However, in April 2007 the national press reported serious concerns about wi-fi safety and in May 2007 these concerns were echoed by BBC’s Panorama. Clearly more work is needed to assess the health implications of this technology. In reaching its conclusion, the council is at best guilty of shoddy research.

We urge the East Area Parliament to reject all plans to install CCTV on the Cowley Road.

Read our full press release at www.no-cctv.org.uk/press.

Better community reduces crime, technology does not.

National cctv strategy starts to bite

The Daily Mail reports that police are demanding access to Britain’s local council CCTV cameras “so they can analyse physical movements that could help identify criminals”. This is all part of the Home Office’s National CCTV Strategy, which includes proposals to create a network of UK surveillance cameras so that the entire country can be accessed by police/security services from a central hub.

This is a nightmare vision – Bentham’s Panopticon -  HM Prison UK.

cctv in schools

As reported in the Telegraph cctv is now being used in many schools to monitor both teachers and pupils. Where is the research that shows the effects of such surveillance? Where is the public debate?  What are our children growing up to perceive as normal?

It is obvious that cctv in classrooms has nothing to do with protecting children or teachers but everything to do with the national obsession to surveille.

Police admit crime falling – so why install CCTV?

The Oxford Mail reports that newly released police figures show crime in the Cowley area is falling, with an almost 20% drop in violent crime. Contrary to scaremongering in the local media by the police, the Cowley Road is not crime ridden and these figures confirm once again that there is no need to install cameras. It’s about time the local council woke up and did the sensible thing – scrap the scheme now!

CCTV sanity in Devon!

The Telegraph reports that a council in Devon have opted not to install CCTV. The district council quite rightly decided that to do so would infringe law abiding citizens’ human rights. They should also have worked out that it does not reduce crime and is a huge waste of money, but hey – it’s a start.

No cctv at oxford radical forum

No cctv will be at the Oxford Radical Forum, Wadham College, Oxford from Friday 29th Feb to Sunday 2nd March. Drop by for a chat. See http://www.oxfordradicalforum.com for more information

It’s official – cctv is a waste of money

The Times reports that local council spending on CCTV and other surveillance technologies is set to push up council tax bills in the UK. The Local Government Minister, John Healey warned that authorities risk being capped if they propose increases of 5% or more. Surely local authorities should be made to justify the public money they spend – the evidence shows that cctv is not an effective tool in the fight against crime.