BIG BROTHER IS WATCHING...

Page 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6
 

Motorists, protesters and fly tippers could be targeted by unmanned spy drones being developed for UK police forces. The Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS), programmed to capture high resolution images at a distance of 20,000ft, could be in use by Kent and Essex Police as early as 2012. Designed to operate in potentially hazardous environments, the drones have been used by British troops in Afghanistan to monitor enemy action and were originally intended to boost maritime surveillance and border controls. But documents released under the Freedom of Information Act have revealed they will now be used for the “routine” monitoring of anti-social motorists, protesters, agricultural thieves and fly tippers.

The collaboration between Kent and Essex Police and BAE Systems, called the South Coast Partnership, was launched in 2007. Developed by BAE Systems, a prototype drone, equipped with cameras and sensors, is due to take flight this year. Andrew Mellors, Head of Civil Autonomous Systems at BAE Systems, said, “From 2012 fully autonomous unmanned air systems could be routinely used by border agencies, the police and other government bodies.” He told the Police Aviation Conference in 2007, “These systems will be fully autonomous so that operators task the vehicles and receive the relevant imagery and intelligence direct to the ground control station in real time.”

Previously, Kent police have said the drone scheme was intended for use over the English Channel to monitor shipping and detect immigrants crossing from France. However reports suggest their use could be far more widespread, including detecting theft from cash machines, preventing theft of tractors and monitoring antisocial driving. The consortium also suggested the drones could be used by councils to combat 'fly-posting, fly-tipping, abandoned vehicles, abnormal loads, waste management'. Five other police forces have signed up to the scheme, which could pave the way for countrywide adoption of the technology for surveillance, monitoring and evidence gathering. (Source: Daily Telegraph, Jan/10)

Bribes for people spying on their neighbours could be paid by councils under new proposals from the Government. Housing benefit officials, environmental health squads, trading standards officers and even private security firms would be allowed to offer cash for information about people suspected of committing relatively low-level crimes under legislation going through Parliament. It would give council officials the same powers to bribe as MI5, MI6, the Armed Forces and the police.

Jack Straw’s Justice Ministry has demanded that town halls be exempt from a Bribery Bill aimed at stamping out corruption in public office and commercial life. His officials have quietly inserted a new clause into the bill. Former Lord Chancellor Lord Mackay and ex-Attorney Generals Sir Nicholas Lyell and Sir Patrick Mayhew are among those who believe that left unaltered, the bill “jeopardises the constitutional principle of the rule of law”. They are concerned it would give too much power to councils already zealously snooping under the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act.

The row intensified as peers scrutinised the latest draft of the bill in the House of Lords. It would create new offences of bribing and being bribed, and would permit action against organisations that fail to prevent workers from bribing on their behalf. Its most controversial element is in Clause 12, which lists a range of officials that would be exempt from prosecution under special circumstances. (Source: Daily Express, Jan/10)

Householders could be fined up to £1,000 if they fail to fill in the census forms next year amid fears that millions of people could refuse to take part. A dedicated team of “non-compliance” officers with police powers will be dispatched across the country to crack down on anyone who fails to fill in the forms. This group will have official powers to caution residents and if necessary take them to court for failing to fill in the forms. The census, an official count of the population which takes place every 10 years, is used by local and central Government to determine spending priorities. However there is a growing concern that the next census might be ignored by millions of Britons.

Nick Hurd, Shadow Minister for the Cabinet Office, said, “Labour’s plans for the next Census threaten to destroy public support. It is so intrusive and bloated that I fear many people will simply throw it in the bin or skim over the questions. The Government’s response of hiring an army of census police will alarm law-abiding families and shows how Labour have no concern for civil liberties. Just because Ministers have legal powers to fine people £1,000 for not answering does not mean it’s right for the state to bully householders and threaten to drag them to court. This is yet another sign of the bully boy state that Labour have created and the gradual criminalisation of middle Britain, fining families for the most minor of breaches of state-imposed rules.”

Each 32 page form asks detailed personal questions about families across the country. The forms have to be filled in by the head of the household and take an average of 40 minutes. Rehearsals in some parts of the country for the 2011 count, which took place last October, found that the response rate among volunteers was as low as 21%. In similar trials before the 2001 count, there was a 53% response rate. Ministers have now signalled a new ‘get tough’ approach towards non-compliance. Under the 1920 Census Act, citizens can be be cautioned under the Police and Criminal Evidence Act and fined £1,000 for failing to answer questions. However the powers have not been properly enforced previously.

In 2001 just 38 people were fined for not filling in their forms. The Government has now announced that a special “non-compliance unit” will force people to fill in their forms. Those that refuse to will be able to be interviewed under caution using the Police and Criminal Evidence Act, taken to court and fined. Baroness Crawley, a Labour whip, told peers in the House of Lords, “In 2001 it was part of the regular field staff’s responsibility to caution people. This time there will be a dedicated non-compliance staff and prosecutions will be pursued in cases of persistent refusal to respond.”

In theory more than one million people could be caught by the crackdown, although in practice the powers are only likely to be used on people who refuse to fill in the forms. In 2001, the ONS has admitted that it had to "impute" information for 6.1% of households who failed to fill in the forms, more than 1.5million families. Ministers have refused to publish the prosecution guidance for its census staff, insisting that “ONS considers any such guidance to be covered by legal and professional privilege”. One in three forms are not filled in completely, leaving large blanks which are filled in by ONS staff who use an average answer using responses from neighbours.

A spokesman for the ONS said it had been expecting the lower response rate in some areas because they had been chosen to be "quite challenging" compared to others. He said, "Every household in England and Wales is legally required to complete and return a census questionnaire. Inevitably, some will not do so and our field teams will try to persuade them to change their mind and complete the census questionnaire and comply with the Census Act."

He added, "We will have a team working on non-compliance and although householders will be offered many opportunities to complete the questionnaire, for those that continue to refuse to do so legal action may be necessary. If legal action is required then cases would be heard in a magistrates court. The amount of the fine under the Criminal Justice Act is at the discretion of the magistrates, with a current maximum £1,000 fine. Pursuing a prosecution against a person would be very much the last resort at the end of a long process of offering people information and assistance." (Source: Daily Telegraph, Jan/10)

<<< Prev