Did you know that Britain has by far the most cameras in the world – about one for every 12 people or approximately 5 million in public and private hands! Police and the Home Office are planning a significant upgrade of the CCTV network with new laws that would require camera operators to ensure that their equipment produces images good enough for police investigations. All spurred on by Government claims that it is needed to fight terrorism. I would like to see some evidence that supports the use of surveillance cameras is a price worth paying for the loss of personal privacy of the majority of the law-biding public. There must be more effective methods of achieving their goals for the ‘fight against terrorism’?
Simon Davies, the director of Privacy International, said: “Surveillance in Britain has now reached a level equivalent to Russia and Malaysia. If something is not done soon to reverse this trend privacy will be extinct within a decade.”