{"id":16510,"date":"2012-10-18T17:24:55","date_gmt":"2012-10-18T16:24:55","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/rinf.com\/alt-news\/?p=16510"},"modified":"2012-10-22T15:49:41","modified_gmt":"2012-10-22T14:49:41","slug":"big-brother-cars-stasi-type-secret-spy-operation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/rinf.com\/alt-news\/editorials\/big-brother-cars-stasi-type-secret-spy-operation\/","title":{"rendered":"Big Brother cars “Stasi-type secret spy operation”"},"content":{"rendered":"

Mick Meaney<\/a> |<\/p>\n

New plans to expand the UK’s controversial ‘spy car’ scheme has been labeled a\u00a0‘Stasi-type spy operation’. The plans are to supposedly protect school children from\u00a0dangerously\u00a0parked cars.<\/p>\n

Essex council leader, Neil Stock stated:<\/p>\n

“Why not stop and speak to parents? Kids are not getting run over and\u00a0this is tackling a problem that does not really exist<\/strong>.”
\nSource<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

The North Essex Parking Partnership (NEPP)\u00a0has agreed to expand the invasive scheme across Essex with a 12 month trial, costing\u00a0\u00a370,000 per car.<\/p>\n

The high-tech surveillance\u00a0cars are fitted with rotating\u00a0CCTV cameras and automatic number plate recognition systems, originally introduced it was claimed, to catch illegal parking outside schools.<\/p>\n

\"\"Image credit<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

Misuse<\/h3>\n

However the cars have not only been used to unethically spy on parents, but have also been used to unfairly issue tickets to disabled drivers if their blue badge does not appear on the CCTV footage.<\/p>\n

In April, a tribunal ruling decided the spy cars had gone against Government guidance and\u00a0were not being used correctly. Cars had needlessly\u00a0been used to issue tickets when\u00a0traffic wardens could have used to\u00a0resolve situations\u00a0instead.<\/p>\n

James Richardson, a Traffic Penalty Tribunal adjudicator stated:<\/p>\n

\u201cThe sensitive nature of evidence gathered by CCTV is specifically considered and addressed by the guidance issued by the Government.<\/p>\n

\u201cRecommendation is made that such devices are only used where enforcement is difficult, sensitive or enforcement by wardens is not practical<\/strong>.\u201d
\nSource<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Cash cow<\/h3>\n

More opponents, including parents, have criticised the scheme, branding it a \u201cBig Brother-like\u201d money-making exercise and an \u201cinvasion of privacy\u201d.<\/p>\n

The financial rewards being made from the cars are significant.<\/p>\n

Cars in Bolton, Lancashire, are currently making the council an extra \u00a3250,000 a year in ticket fines.<\/p>\n

One outraged parent, Derwent Jaconelli, has spoken out:<\/p>\n

“My view is quite simple. I think traffic wardens and police are there to control traffic and give you the opportunity to move along.<\/p>\n

“I think the spy cameras and the spy cars are a money-making enterprise. Highway robbery is what it is.<\/p>\n

“From a primary school parent point of view, some parents have more than one child so they are going\u00a0around maybe two or three schools.”
\nSource<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Headteacher Sophia Pardalis\u00a0of\u00a0Limes Farm Junior School in Chigwell, supports the idea but admits:<\/p>\n

“We have a caretaker at the school who stops people coming along and parking on the zig-zag lines<\/strong> but unless that’s happening cars do sneak in.”
\nSource<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Right now over 20 local authorities outside London are now using \u201cremote enforcement\u201d vehicles, and that number is set to increase.<\/p>\n

Campaign Big Brother Watch slammed the scheme:<\/p>\n

\u201cThe CCTV car represents a very dangerous escalation in Britain\u2019s surveillance society. These vehicles are sent out to catch people and make money, with road safety only an afterthought.\u201d
\nSource<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Perhaps more disturbing still is the fact that councils have gone to\u00a0extreme lengths to steal from the population, calling in\u00a0\u00a0bailiffs to take fines from hundreds of motorists.<\/p>\n

One rule for us<\/h3>\n

The scheme is also hypocritical.<\/p>\n

Earlier this year the Stoke-on-Trent council was accused of\u00a0double standards when it emerged that spy cars are\u00a0exempt from traffic rules.<\/p>\n

Spy cars have been spotted parking illegally on double yellow lines and\u00a0loading-only bays.<\/p>\n

Ian Tamburello, the city council’s strategic manager for enforcement, said:<\/p>\n

“Enforcement vehicles are exempt from restrictions on highways when they are carrying out enforcement duties.”
\nSource<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

One frustrated motorist, Sabrina Lillie, said:<\/p>\n

“It’s not fair if they’re going to fine someone for driving offences and then go and do it themselves. If they want to be taken seriously, they should abide by their own rules.”
\nSource<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Protest groups have sprung up that aim to combat this aspect of the surveillance society by\u00a0following spy cars and warning motorists when the cars are approaching.<\/p>\n

Member of one group, Steve Baker, said:<\/p>\n

\u00a0\u201cWe are not stopping the cars from doing their job. In fact, we are encouraging and helping them.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf drivers are not parking illegally, then they won\u2019t get caught.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are simply helping the spy car fulfil what the Secretary of State said in 2008, which was to get 100 per cent compliance, with no penalty charges.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe also observed the cars to make sure they were not committing any offences themselves when they were out.\u201d
\nSource<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

With spy drone<\/a>s in the sky, spy cars on our roads and streets, facial recognition CCTV<\/a> and police illegally installing cameras in people’s homes<\/a>, just how far is Big Brother\u00a0Britain willing to go?<\/p>\n

Mick Meaney is the editor of\u00a0RINF News<\/a>,\u00a0created as a\u00a0response to increasing levels of control, distortions and lies from the government, corporations and the media.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Mick Meaney | New plans to expand the UK’s controversial ‘spy car’ scheme has been labeled a\u00a0‘Stasi-type spy operation’. The plans are to supposedly protect school children from\u00a0dangerously\u00a0parked cars. Essex council leader, Neil Stock stated: “Why not stop and speak to parents? Kids are not getting run over and\u00a0this is tackling a problem that does […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[461,1615],"tags":[55],"class_list":{"0":"post-16510","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-editorials","7":"category-uk-news","8":"tag-uk-news"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/rinf.com\/alt-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16510","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/rinf.com\/alt-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/rinf.com\/alt-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/rinf.com\/alt-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/rinf.com\/alt-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=16510"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/rinf.com\/alt-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16510\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/rinf.com\/alt-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=16510"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/rinf.com\/alt-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=16510"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/rinf.com\/alt-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=16510"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}