Cash-strapped councils forced to switch off CCTV cameras across UK's towns and cities

CCTV cameras are being quietly switched off in towns and cities across the country as councils seek to cut costs – a development welcomed by civil liberties groups but which has led to concerns that the police will find it harder to investigate crimes.

Tony Porter, the Surveillance Camera Commissioner, told The Independent that a rising number of local authorities in England and Wales are shutting down CCTV networks to cope with cuts imposed under the austerity programme, raising the prospect of a “postcode lottery” for crime detection.

The former counter-terrorism officer, who is responsible for the regulation of around 100,000 publicly operated cameras, called for the creation of inspection teams to ensure that councils’ networks are being managed effectively while maintaining the public’s right to privacy.

The Police Federation said the deactivation of cameras would introduce “vulnerabilities” to counter-terrorism operations and “deny justice” to victims of sexual offences and street violence.

But civil liberties groups said there was little evidence of the cameras’ effectiveness and that councils were right to keep them under review.

“There are an increasing number of examples where councils and employees are citing a lack of money as being the rationale to reduce the service or completely change its composition – and that does concern me,” Mr Porter said. “Because CCTV isn’t a statutory function, it is something a lot of councils are looking at.”

He continued: “Most people recognise the utility of CCTV for supporting law enforcement. To degrade the capacity may have an impact on police. It may well be that they will find it increasingly difficult to acquire the images that will help them investigate crimes.”

Mr Porter, who was appointed to the independent role just over a year ago, warned in a speech earlier this week that councils in Blackpool and Derby had stopped “monitoring their systems 24/7” to save money. “My understanding is that this is not the result of a review or public consultation but simply to save money,” he said. A “deterioration of standards and training” was likely as local councils hired inexperienced CCTV operators, he told a conference in Kenilworth.

Paul Ford, of the Police Federation, said CCTV was crucial to ensure public safety and that “arbitrary” deactivation carried “massive consequences” for policing, as it would create blind spots around cities.

“We shouldn’t see it in isolation. You have to link it to the turning off of street lighting, the closure of police stations and the reduction of 17,000 officers in England and Wales. It’s quite a toxic mix,” he said.

Mr Porter stressed that some councils were switching off CCTV cameras in a responsible way, by studying crime statistics and identifying areas where they were not needed. One West Midlands council had deactivated a third of its cameras in this way, saving £250,000 in the process. “I think that’s to be celebrated, because it reduces civic surveillance but leaves a camera network that the public can have trust in,” he added.

Under legislation passed in 2012, councils and police forces are legally obliged to pay “due regard” to the Surveillance Camera Code of Practice – but breaching it does not mean an automatic sanction. Mr Porter is due to deliver a report on the country’s CCTV network to the Home Secretary, Theresa May, in the autumn.

He told The Independent that his current role, which only permits him to “encourage, review and advise”, should be strengthened to allow him to send inspectors into councils. “I do think public authorities should be held to greater account. If that is some form of inspection and enforcement notice, I think that can be achieved with a fairly light touch,” he said.

According to some estimates there are up to six million CCTV cameras in the UK, one of the highest in the world. Emma Carr, the director of civil liberties group Big Brother Watch, said Britain’s crime rate was “not significantly lower” than comparable countries which did not have such levels of surveillance.

“Councils should therefore be regularly reviewing whether their CCTV systems are necessary. Evidence repeatedly shows that rather than CCTV, measures like better street lighting and effective policing are what keep the public safe.”

A spokesman for the Local Government Association, which represents local authorities, said: “Councils have never had to monitor CCTV 24 hours a day to be effective, with most systems automatically recording footage. Residents value such surveillance and where it is cost effective and makes an impact, councils will continue to invest in it. While councils pay for most CCTV cameras, the main users of the recorded footage are the police and Crown Prosecution Service during criminal investigations.”

A government spokesman said crime had fallen by more than a quarter since 2010, making communities “safer than at any point” since the Crime Survey for England and Wales began in 1981. “Public safety is paramount and the majority of local authorities have continued to balance their budgets and increased or maintained public satisfaction with services,” he added. “Decisions on CCTV provision should be made by elected councillors, reflecting the views of residents – especially in relation to concerns about crime.”