Britain's surveillance culture undermines democracy.

Antaletriangle · 02-06-2009, 02:23 PM

http://www.theinquirer.net/inquirer/...ines-democracy

Privacy plundered
By Nick Farrell
Friday, 6 February 2009, 13:02 BRITAIN IS BEGINNING to sharply resemble Orwell's vision of a Big Brother society. While most of us living here have known it for some while, even the doddery old duffers in the House of Lords have now noticed.

The Lords constitution committee reports levels of surveillance in the country both by the state and by private firms are threatening to undermine democracy as we know it. The right to privacy, the report says, is "an essential pre-requisite to the exercise of individual freedom," yes it is being systematically undermined.

Big Brother Broon

"There can be no justification for this gradual but incessant creep towards every detail about us being recorded and pored over by the state," said committee chairman and Conservative peer Lord Goodlad.

People who are spied on by the government under terrorism laws should be compensated if they are found to be totally innocent, according to the report with the catchy title Surveillance: Citizens and the State.

You'd have thought the Lords would be aware that we are supposed to be subjects not citizens.

Local councils were slammed for using their powers under the terrorism act to investigate petty offences like dog fouling and under-age smoking. Surveillance cameras are being used "to spy on the public over issues such as littering," the report said.

Judges should have the final word on when town halls and other public organisations can use terror powers to spy on people, the report said.

It called for a legally-binding code of conduct about when it is unacceptable to spy on people. If the public is to trust that information about them is not being improperly used there should be much more openness about what data is collected, by whom and how it is used.

The Government should recognise that privacy is an "essential pre-requisite to the exercise of individual freedom", the report said.

It made 44 recommendations including one which allowed the Information Commissioner to be given the same powers to carry out inspections of private sector organisations as for the public sector.

"The huge rise in surveillance and data collection by the state and other organisations risks undermining the long-standing tradition of privacy and individual freedom which are vital for democracy," Lord Goodlad added. µ

02-06-2009, 02:23 PM	#1
Antaletriangle Avalon Senior Member Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: U.K. Posts: 3,380	Britain's surveillance culture undermines democracy. http://www.theinquirer.net/inquirer/...ines-democracy Privacy plundered By Nick Farrell Friday, 6 February 2009, 13:02 BRITAIN IS BEGINNING to sharply resemble Orwell's vision of a Big Brother society. While most of us living here have known it for some while, even the doddery old duffers in the House of Lords have now noticed. The Lords constitution committee reports levels of surveillance in the country both by the state and by private firms are threatening to undermine democracy as we know it. The right to privacy, the report says, is "an essential pre-requisite to the exercise of individual freedom," yes it is being systematically undermined. Big Brother Broon "There can be no justification for this gradual but incessant creep towards every detail about us being recorded and pored over by the state," said committee chairman and Conservative peer Lord Goodlad. People who are spied on by the government under terrorism laws should be compensated if they are found to be totally innocent, according to the report with the catchy title Surveillance: Citizens and the State. You'd have thought the Lords would be aware that we are supposed to be subjects not citizens. Local councils were slammed for using their powers under the terrorism act to investigate petty offences like dog fouling and under-age smoking. Surveillance cameras are being used "to spy on the public over issues such as littering," the report said. Judges should have the final word on when town halls and other public organisations can use terror powers to spy on people, the report said. It called for a legally-binding code of conduct about when it is unacceptable to spy on people. If the public is to trust that information about them is not being improperly used there should be much more openness about what data is collected, by whom and how it is used. The Government should recognise that privacy is an "essential pre-requisite to the exercise of individual freedom", the report said. It made 44 recommendations including one which allowed the Information Commissioner to be given the same powers to carry out inspections of private sector organisations as for the public sector. "The huge rise in surveillance and data collection by the state and other organisations risks undermining the long-standing tradition of privacy and individual freedom which are vital for democracy," Lord Goodlad added. µ