Ipswich Council is proud of the workers in its “control room” who have the ability to decide what is and what isn’t legal before issuing their commands via the town’s new speaking cctv cameras. Ordinary people, though, might question what training they receive before being allowed to get their fingers round the mic of power, especially given the insight into the quality of some local authority employees unearthed during Leicester’s recent crackdown on council employee fraud.
Using RIPA in an extravagent banquet of eating their own, Leicester City Council investigated over 122 cases of alleged fraud by council workers last year. The array of municipal naughtiness included council workers stealing plumbing equipment, siphoning off petrol from council vehicles, working in pubs whilst signed off as sick and, tra la, selling council laptops on eBay.
Council leader Ross Willmott said: “The vast majority of council employees are honest, trustworthy, and do their best for the organisation.” I am sure they are Mr Willmott, but what assurances can your local residents be given that the minority will not be allowed to play with all the new social control tools your authority will soon have at its disposal? Selling your laptops on eBay might appear somewhat antedeluvian once they are able to sell our images or personal identities don’t you think?
Tags: fraud, leicester city council, local authorities, surveillance, uk
