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Council defends using surveillance powers
Date published: 30 March 2009
OLDHAM Council is one of the most frequent users in the country of surveillance powers designed to tackle terrorism — for misbehaviour such as fly tipping and noise nuisance.
The council has used powers under the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act (RIPA) 185 times in the last five years — putting it eighth out of 182 local authorities.
The “spying” powers allow authorities to use surveillance and information gathering to prevent crime. But some councils have been accused of using them for petty reasons — such as dog fouling, spying on village paperboys, or checking on parents making school admission applications.
The Liberal Democrats, who obtained the details using the Freedom of Information Act, said it represents an erosion of civil liberties and warned that RIPA was becoming a “snooper’s charter”.
However, council leader Councillor Howard Sykes said that following a recent review of the council’s use of RIPA, councillors are now consulted before the act is used to give an extra oversight.
He said: “It can be extremely difficult gathering evidence against rogue traders, fly tippers and some forms of anti-social behaviour. The powers in the act allow us to gather the evidence required.
“We will not shy away from using all the powers at our disposal to make life better for the people of Oldham.”
Oldham has used the controversial powers 76 times in noise nuisance cases, 27 times to tackle fly tipping, 20 times in anti-social behaviour cases and for 28 other incidents, including eight fraud cases and nine animal welfare cases. Its Trading Standards department used it 34 times.
But using the powers has resulted in only 56 successful prosecutions — just over one in four cases.
At many councils only the chief executive can authorise use of RIPA, but at Oldham 20 officers have the power to do so.
Across England and Wales it’s been used more than 10,000 times for minor offences such as littering, dog fouling and taking the fairy lights from a Christmas tree.
Comments
Oldham Council are very selective in the use of this Act. I never see it being used for so-called travellers' sites and the extreme mess they leave when they vacate property where they've been trespassing. There are also some areas in Oldham where illegal parking, littering and fly-tipping go completely unpunished at all times - most Oldhamers know where these places are!
Bring your cameras to Moorside - you can spy on your council employees deliberately throwing litter on the pavements.
Council Leader Howard Sykes has reassured the Oldham public that the local authority's surveillance technology like CCTV cameras is only used in cases involving significant criminal behaviour.
"Where, for example, rogue traders are preying on elderly residents to extort money and where fly tippers dump their waste illegally and cause misery to local neighbourhoods we have no hesitation in using the surveillance technology at our disposal.
.. What's more we believe in instances like this it is just what local residents would expect of the Council. "But in line with national guidelines we do use this technology only when it is necessary and proportionate in the prevention and detection of crime. We think Oldham has it about right and cannot be accused of a big brother approach to surveillance like certain other councils," he said.
Councillor Sykes welcomed the Local Government Association's advice to councils not to use surveillance equipment for trivial matters. "Oldham follows rules approved by the Office of the Surveillance Commissioner and because of the nature of this type of work we keep it under review all the time to make sure we are not accused of overstepping the mark or not following the 'necessary and proportionate' guidelines," said Councillor Sykes.
Source, http://www.oldham.gov.uk/contrast/view_press_release.htm?refno=CA/PR/ES/131/08
Hypocrite Sykes.
Councillor Sykes said that councillors are now consulted before the act is used to give an extra oversight. Oh! goody. It's comforting to know that great minds are giving studied thought to this matter. Why are there '20 officers' with the power? It leaves the scheme open to abuse.
“Using the powers has resulted in only 56 successful prosecutions — just over one in four cases.” Go on then, how much has all this cost US? “.. Making life better for the people of Oldham.” By spying on us?
For years I have been complaining about taxis parking in bus lanes and bus stops, it as shame that sykes won’t actually think of using the cameras on yorkshire street and park road were at least 100 offences are acted out each day by taxi drivers and cash & carry owners.
Wow! Oldham near the top of a league table. But don't cheer, because yet again, it's anti-people. I'm afraid CCTV (can't catch the villains) Cameras do not prevent crime. They simply record it. They are an easy, money making, option for the state's aim of controlling the individual. No more, no less. Pretty soon, Big Brother will need the rest of his family to help him watch us!
Have Your Say
Its a pity they don't have surveillance in the Queen St/Sumner St/Twingates area of Shaw where the more 'unsavoury' residents have been fly-tipping for years! Also the Memorial Gardens where some of the local dog-owners never clear up the mess .....
By AnimoAtqueFide @ 30/03/2009 12:49:16