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For a nosey parker it's an interesting job

Wanted: Nosey parkers to monitor police CCTV cameras

Daily Mail, UK: 24 July
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1038322/Wanted-Nosey-parkers-monitor-police-CCTV-c
ameras.html
Or, http://tinyurl.com/5bl9p3

A police force has angered civil liberty groups by recruiting
volunteers to monitor its CCTV cameras.

Officials at Dorset Police want the 'nosy parkers' to sit watching
live footage from 26 cameras across three towns in a bid to detect
crime.

Applicants for the Orwellian offer should be able to 'concentrate for
long periods of time' and have good visual skills.

Successful candidates must then help to man a control room and watch
out for any suspicious behaviour.

If they do notice anything untoward, the 'Big Brother' volunteers will
alert police officers to the scene.

The job is open to all residents in the county who are able to work
four-hour unpaid shifts on weekdays and weekends.

But the scheme has angered many who believe it is intrusive and is a
further erosion of our civil liberties.

Resident Tony Marks described it as a charter for 'nosy parkers' and
said if there were officers on the beat it wouldn't be necessary.

Mark Wallace from the Tax-Payers Alliance described Dorset Police's
idea as a 'concern'.

He said: 'I think it is a concern that things have got so bad that
police need volunteers to monitor CCTV.

'Increasing numbers of the general public are concerned about invasion
of privacy involved with CCTV.

'There will now be even fewer guarantees about the integrity and
professionalism because of who is doing it.'

One of the reasons why Conservative MP David Davis recently stood down
to fight a bi-election was due to the erosion of civil liberties,
including the increase in CCTV.

Dorset Police has decided to take on the civilians after a similar
scheme proved successful in Wimborne.

Four volunteers have been monitoring cameras in the town for the last
four years and its CCTV system has just had a 70,000 pounds upgrade.

The force is now looking for civilians to expand the scheme into
Blandford, Shaftesbury and Gillingham.

They will sign a confidentiality agreement before working shifts on
Friday and Saturday nights.

Officers say the peak time they would like the cameras watched is
between 11pm and 3am.

They are to look out for crimes including graffiti spraying, public
order offences, shop lifting and criminal damage.

Inspector Phil Cheverton, section commander for North Dorset, said:
'We are looking for anyone over 18 who would like to monitor our live
CCTV cameras.

'The offer is open to as many people as possible as we don't want them
to feel as though they have to come in all the time.

'We want it to be a contribution they enjoy doing together. Training
will be provided.

'All the volunteers will be taught about confidentiality and will sign
a form of agreement.

'This will say that they must not discuss with anyone else anything
they have viewed, seen or heard.

'The information they gain must not be used for any other purpose
other than policing.

'The volunteers will also be given a list of rules to reinforce this
issue of confidentiality.

'Everything must be kept secret or the entire system fails.'

Inspector Cheverton said the police do not currently monitor their
CCTV cameras as the crime level is 'too low'.

He said: 'It would be totally wrong to say that we are recruiting
volunteers because we don't have enough time to do it ourselves.

'Our CCTV system is not permanently monitored because it isn't cost
effective as our crime levels are so low in Dorset.

'If our crime rate was high then it would be monitored all the time
but as it currently stands we would be wasting tax-payers money to
employ someone to do it.

'We are an intelligence-led force so we monitor CCTV as an when we
need it.'

He added that CCTV has made a 'significant' impact on street crime
across his division.

He said: 'CCTV has featured in the investigations of various assaults
where we have been able to show clear footage of offenders.

'We have seen criminal damage drop and public order offences fall.

'Certainly they are proving to be a strong crime prevention tool and
prevention is as important as cure.'

Michael Warr, the CCTV coordinator for Blandford, said he is looking
for volunteers to help monitor his town plus Shaftesbury and
Gillingham.

He said: 'We are looking for volunteers with good visual and
communication skills.

'They must also have the ability to concentrate for long periods at a
time.

'Some technical ability in basic computer literacy would be beneficial
but full training will be provided.'

But a spokesman for civil rights campaign group Liberty said officers
out on the beat is the best method of crime prevention.

He said: 'CCTV is not a magic bullet. While it can provide evidence
that could lead to a conviction, it has limited crime prevention
powers.

'Studies show that the most effective way of curbing crime is regular,
consistent police patrolling and good street lighting.'

The announcement comes just weeks after a cyclist was asked to check
CCTV footage himself after his bike was stolen at a train station in
West Sussex.

Richard Deakin, 23, was told by officers at British Transport Police
to watch the security videos himself as they did not have the time.

And the policy seems in stark contrast to the increasing numbers of
officials who stop amateur photographers taking pictures in public in
case they are paedophiles.

This week, two elderly widows were told by a council official in
Southampton to stop photographing an empty paddling pool.

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