Posted on 2 June 2010

Stop big brother councils spying

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There are calls for the government to take action after it was revealed that councils’ throughout the country were exploiting covert surveillance.

The pressure group Big Brother Watch has called on the government to scrap the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act (RIPA) after finding that councils have been using the powers given to them by the act to spy on their own employees or on dog walkers suspected of not clearing up after their pets.

A new study from the pressure group, called Grim RIPA, found that the act was used on average 11 times a day by councils throughout the UK. Hambleton District Council in North Yorkshire was named as one of the councils which used the act to check on its employees suspected of falsely claiming illness. This is seen as an invasion of privacy by many but could also leave councils open to employment discrimination claims.

The government is already trying to limit the powers of councils by issuing new regulations which will require councils to obtain a warrant from magistrates before the legislation can be used. However Big Brother Watch wants the government to go further.

Its director Alex Deane said: “Now that the absurd and excessive use of RIPA surveillance has been revealed, these powers have to be taken away from councils. The coalition government plans, to force councils to get warrants before snooping on us is good, but doesn’t go far enough. If the offence is serious enough to merit covert surveillance, then it should be in the hands of the police.”

yorkshirepost.co.uk/latest-national-news/Councils-39abusing-spying-powers39.6314382.jp