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Councils' surveillance powers curbed

Source: guardian.co.uk Society

Nov 04, 2009

Summary

Government rewrites laws to stop local authorities monitoring people for dog fouling or putting bin out on wrong day

The "surveillance state" powers of local authorities to snoop on the public are to be curbed under reforms announced by the home secretary, Alan Johnson.

Junior council officials are to lose the authority to order surveillance operations including secret filming and eavesdropping for "trivial reasons" such as catching people putting out their rubbish on the wrong day or letting their dogs foul the street.

In future only council chief executives and directors will have the power to order covert surveillance operations and a new code of practice will ban their use for minor matters.

MPs are to be given assurances that their communications with constituents are confidential and any eavesdropping by police will need high level authorisation.

Elected councillors are to be given a role in overseeing the way their local authorities carry out surveillance operations.

The changes will be made to the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act (Ripa), which was int

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