Terror laws used to watch public in UK.

Here we see the nazification of the UK, as councils now use terror laws to snoop and oppress the masses: councils spying on public with anti-terror legislation:

An investigation by The Sunday Telegraph found that three quarters of local authorities have used the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act (RIPA) 2000 over the past year.

The Act gives councils the right to place residents and businesses under surveillance, trace telephone and email accounts and even send staff on undercover missions.

The findings alarmed civil liberties campaigners. Shami Chakrabarti, the director of Liberty, said: "Councils do a grave disservice to professional policing by using serious surveillance against litterbugs instead of terrorists."

The RIPA was introduced to help fight terrorism and crime. But a series of extensions, first authorised by David Blunkett in 2003, mean that Britain's 474 councils can use the law to tackle minor misdemeanours.

Councils are using the Act to tackle dog fouling, the unauthorised sale of pizzas and the abuse of the blue badge scheme for disabled drivers.

Wow! Get this "the abuse of the blue badge scheme for disabled drivers." right up there with 9/11.

Of course the people in power, when given powers and given that local authorities are full of petty minded twats with Napoleon complexs and small genitalia get a raging erection at the thought of snooping and throwing their weight about; that is abusing the people who pay their wages.

Among 115 councils that responded to a Freedom of Information request, 89 admitted that they had instigated investigations under the Act. The 82 councils that provided figures said that they authorised or carried out a total of 867 RIPA investigations during the year to August

Durham county council emerged as the biggest user, with just over 100 surveillance operations launched during the period. Newcastle city council used the powers 82 times, and Middlesbrough council 70 times.

Here is a typical example:

Derby council made sound recordings of a property after a complaint about noisy children.

Dudley and County Durham exploited the Act to send children into shops with secret video and audio equipment to see whether they could buy cigarettes and alcohol.

Northampton council, which did not implement the Act during the past 12 months, said that it had used the legislation on five previous occasions to tackle dog fouling

Sir Jeremy Beecham acting chairman of the Local Government Association, which represents councils, said last night:

"Councils do not use these powers to mount fishing expeditions. First and foremost it is about protecting the public."

Bollocks. Total fucking bollocks. Quite how is making sound recordings of children protecting the public? Potential ear damage maybe? Or checking to see if Abdul in the corner shop is selling little ones 20 Benson & Hedges for that matter, that looks like a fishing expedition to me.

Some more examples:

Newcastle City Council used the Act to monitor noise levels from smoking shelters at two different licensed premises. The council has twice used the legislation to monitor noise from a vet’s practice following a complaint about barking.

-How is that protecting the public Sir Jeremy Beecham?

* Blaenau Gwent County Borough Council used it to deal with 16 complaints about barking dogs.

-How is barking dogs a danger Sir Jeremy Beecham?

* Derby Council made sound recordings at a property following a complaint about noisy children.

* Peterborough Council investigated the operation of the blue badge scheme for disabled drivers.

* Poole Council used it to detect illegal fishing in Poole Harbour.

* Basingstoke Council used photographic surveillance against one of its own refuse collectors after allegations he was charging residents for a service that should be free. The operation was dropped when it was decided the allegation was false.

* Aberdeenshire Council admitted using the Scottish version of the Act to request the name and address of a mobile phone user as part of an investigation into offences under the Weights and Measures Act.

* Easington council put a resident’s garden under camera surveillance after a complaint from neighbours about noise.

* Canterbury City Council used CCTV surveillance and an officer’s observations to monitor illegal street trading.

* Brighton and Hove council launched four operations against graffiti artists

* Torbay Council accessed an employee’s emails after an allegation that suspect material had been sent. A second employee was investigated over the “use of council vehicle for personal gain”.

* Westminster City Council covertly filmed a locksmith following allegations of fraud.

* Durham County Council obtained authorisation to monitor car boot sales during an investigation into the sale of counterfeit goods.

*Westminster City Council covertly filmed a locksmith following allegations of fraud.

Gordon Brown a man who makes me so angry I could punch his lights out

.