According to a number of national newspapers, the document says the technology will record details “for all crime fighting purposes”, but campaign groups have been quick to voice concerns over plans for nationwide police access.
Earlier, Home Secretary Jacqui Smith waived Data Protection Act safeguards to allow anti-terror police access to London’s congestion charge cameras.
Currently police can only apply for the capital’s congestion zone records on a case-by-case basis. Under the new plans they will have access to all of the data ‘live’.
The document, which was leaked to the Liberal Democrats by mistake, says:
“Civil rights groups and privacy campaigners may condemn this as further evidence of an encroaching Big Brother approach to policing.”
It continues “Conversely, there may be surprise that the data collected by the congestion charge cameras is not already used for national security purposes.”
Shami Chakrabarti, the director of Liberty, said:
“It is one thing to ask the public for special measures to fight the threat of terrorism. But when that becomes a Trojan horse for mass snooping for more petty matters it only leads to a loss of trust in government.”
Ministers made GB pound 32.5 million available to the police between 2005-07 for the provision of ANPR technological development.
The Home Office website says a ‘significant proportion’ of this funding was allocated to the development of the National ANPR Data Centre (NADC) – a facility that aims to enhance the police’s post-incident investigation capability.
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