CONTROLS URGED ON BIG BROTHER'S ALL-SEEING EYE

Increasing use of security cameras sees Britain lead the world towards an
Orwellian society Alastair Dalton

Britain is leading the world towards an Orwellian vision of Big Brother
watching our every move, with one security camera for every 200 people.

Civil liberties campaigners last night warned that the proliferation of
closed-circuit television (CCTV) cameras was set to increase further and
urged the Government to introduce safeguards on their use.

British businesses and local authorities are spending UKP300 million
annually on CCTV cameras, which number more than 300,000 and are increasing
by up to 20 per cent a year, according to 'Amateur Photographer' magazine.

In Scotland, Edinburgh last month became the 85th area to launch a CCTV
scheme since 1992, while the Scottish Office will make an extra UKP1.5
million available next year for similar projects.

In many areas, every activity, from buying a ticket at railway stations and
parking the car in a public space to shopping and using cash machines, is
being caught on film.

The magazine estimated that motorists are the most watched group, with more
than 10,000 traffic, speed and car park cameras in operation.

It said one member of staff had been watched by almost 80 cameras on his
one-hour journey to work.

'Amateur Photographer' also reported an increase in the sale of mini-video
surveillance systems, which can be hidden in books, locks and pictures.

Some are setup by employers to watch their staff, while residents are
checking up or tradesmen and people are spying on their partners.

Others film their private lives for broadcast on the internet, while there
has been a cam-corder revolution prompted by television shows, such as
'You've Been Framed', featuring home video clips.

A new film starring Jim Carrey, which has been released in the United
States, seems to reflect the trend, In 'The Truman Show', Carrey's whole
life is, unknown to him, filmed and broadcast to a worldwide television
audience of billions.

The Scottish Home Affairs Minister, Henry Mcleish, has said research has
proved the effectiveness of CCTV schemes in combating car crime, theft and
vandalism.

In some areas, including Perth city centre, crime has been cut by half.

So far this year, an Aberdeen pub bouncer has admitted to killing an oil
worker after the incident was caught on CCTV, while cameras have also led to
the conviction of drug dealers in Perth and a man who committed an assault
in Hamilton.

In January, police took the rare step of issuing CCTV pictures of a man seen
accompanying the murdered Glasgow prostitute Tracy Wylde, in their hunt for
her killer. The investigation is coninuing.

However there have been concerns about the control, use and distribution of
the video tapes, and claims that crime is simply shifted to other areas.

A judge at the High Court in London ruled last November that a council had
been within its rights to release CCIV footage of a man attempting suicide
to TV companies, but said the case raised important civil liberties
implications.

The Scottish Human Rights Centre expressed concern at the unchecked growth
in CCTV, whose spread was being encouraged by the Government.

Its director, Professor Alan Miller, said: "All the indications are that
this trend is going to increase in the future, but there has been no attempt
at a code of practice over its private use."

Prof Miller predicted that the European Convention on Human Right, expected
to be adopted by Britain in 2000, would lead to controls over the access and
use of footage, and redress for unnecessary invasion of privacy.

Roseanna Cunningham, the Scottish National Party's home affairs spokeswoman,
said: "We really ought to be looking towards legislating for its [CCTV's]
control and uses."

Simon Davies, of the Computer Security Research Centre at the London School
of Economics, said cameras rarely reduced crime and they had replaced proper
policing.

In February, the Home Office signalled its intention to introduce measures
to prevent broadcasters using CCTV footage for entertainment, but said
details had still to be worked out.

Checked-by: Melodi Cornett