Call Sign April 2008 - Page 15 - Does CCTV contravene the Human Rights Act?

Does CCTV contravene the Human Rights Act?

Bearing in mind the number of Dial-a-Cab drivers now being caught on CCTV and being fined for just doing their jobs, an interesting article appeared in a recent Daily Telegraph and was forwarded to Call Sign by DaC driver Bernie Silver (G08).
The article concerned the south Devon council at South Hams and their decision not to install CCTV cameras into the area even though there has been an increase in anti-social behaviour, because it could contravene the Human Rights Act. Courtesy of The Daily Telegraph, we are republishing the article and make no comment other than to ask whether there is a difference between human rights in South Devon and that in London…?

COUNCIL RULES OUT ‘UNLAWFUL’ CCTV

Courtesy Daily Telegraph

A council has decided not to install CCTV cameras in a crime-ridden area on the grounds they would "contravene the Human Rights Act."
   Over the past year, anti-social behaviour has soared in the South Hams area of south Devon. But the local authority claims that the cameras would breach people’s right to a "private life."
   The council’s stand comes amid a number of complaints by residents in Dartmouth, Devon, about the rise in anti-social behaviour such as drunkenness and vandalism.
   The council yesterday revealed it would prefer to tackle the problem by improving lighting and visibility in the problematic areas. It claims to have been told that CCTV would be an infringement of the Human Rights Act - stating that every member of the public has "a
right to respect for their private and family life."
   Nick Hodgson, head of property services for the district council said: "The council was advised that the use of CCTV could contravene the Human Rights Act. We also took advice from the police, who indicated the use of CCTV would not aid the legal process and was unlikely to help identify offenders. CCTV is only one of a number of measures to combat anti-social behaviour."
   But the revelations angered local residents. Angela Pitman, mother-of-two from Dartmouth, said: "It's disgusting that the council prefer to think of the criminals and their human rights rather than ours. What about us, the people who live their lives by the law, who are the victims of anti-social behaviour nearly on a day-to-day basis?"

ALLEN TOGWELL ASKS…

Is your Society worth more than Ł10?

DaC's new handout card designed in-house by Allen Togwell

"How much do you value your society," is a question I have been compelled to ask on five occasions recently… and the answer is just ten quid! As little as ten pieces of silver is the amount some of our members are prepared to accept in order to cover the identity of a business of which they are shareholders.
It makes no sense to me whatsoever how someone is willing to pay Ł135 per month to obtain additional income through covering radio work, yet is prepared to accept Ł10 for a six-month agreement to cover the advertising in the back of their cabs, which is there to assist in generating that very income. There is absolutely no logic.
Are you guys so hard up that you are willing to sell your soul to those spivs in Waterloo and elsewhere and in doing so jeopardise the future success of your own Society for a lousy ten quid? It beggars belief. It also makes me wonder why you bother to pay me to spend time in

the office designing advertising material when you have no intention of using it?
Obviously my comments are not aimed at all of you, thank goodness, and to those of you that are sincerely proud of your Society and understand the power of advertising, I
would like to inform you that I have recently designed new tip-up seat ads and new give-away cards, which are available in the members entrance at Dial-a-Cab House and also at Roman Way. Newly designed receipt pads will also be available soon.
Those of you that perhaps didn’t think there was any harm in putting these Ł10 ads on your tip-up seats, please put them where they belong - in the refuse bin - and instead get a far better financial return by pointing to your DaC ad when a cash customer is in the back of your cab, give them one of our cards and tell them how much more convenient it is getting a cab from Dial-a-Cab rather than waiting on the street. Get their business card, pass it on to us and for that card we will pay you Ł20. Easypeasy and a dam sight more profitable than a one-off payment of ten quid…

Allen Togwell
DaC Marketing
allent@dialacab.co.uk

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