Clippings (November-December 1998)Clippings (November-December 1998)Cameras are needed (Letters to the Editor, T&A, 11/12/98)
My tribute to 3 hard-working councillors (Letters to the editor, T&A, 2/12/98)
True test of CCTV (Letters to the Editor, T&A 2/12/98)
Rachel's killer plans appeal over sentence (T&A, 26/11/98)
CCTV is vital (Letters to the Editor, T&A, 24/11/98)
CCTV is a complete waste of public money (Letters to the Editor, T&A, 14/11/98)
Keeping an 'eye' on crime (T&A editorial, Nov 5 1998)
£500,000 plan for better TV cameras (T&A 5 Nov 1998)
T&A 5 Nov 1998
A £500,000 revamp of Bradford's closed circuit TV system is being planned.
Bradford Council wants to upgrade the black and white cameras to colour and improve the quality of the pictures they produce. Officers say crime has plummeted since the 37 cameras were introduced, mainly in car parks, but they desperately need to be upgraded.
Chairman of the Council's community safety sub-committee Councillor John Ruding said the authority wanted to know exactly what the public thought about the improvement plans before they went ahead. He said funding would be examined if people said they wanted the system to continue and they might look to pubs and clubs for sponsorship.
Coun Ruding said although the existing cameras had been very successful in helping to reduce crime, they had limitations.
"They are black and white and we would want colour, which would help because you could describe people's clothing after an incident. We would also want a better quality of picture if it went ahead."
But Bradford Trades Union Council wants public viewing areas in the authority's CCTV nerve centre and automatic electronic auditing of each camera operator's actions.
The proposals - said to ensure proper accountability - have already been sent to the Council by the TUC as its response to the authority's consultation exercise. The Trades Council says if the systems are retained or upgraded then privacy concerns and the protection of civil liberties are essential.
It says the public should be able to "watch the watchers".
The TUC proposals include:
Coun Ruding welcomed the TUC's responses. There was a code of conduct covering operators, accessibility and training. But he said they would not want public viewing or the location of the centre known in case operators were targeted.
T&A editorial, Nov 5 1998
Closed-circuit television has proved its worth as an important tool in the fight against crime. We regularly carry reports of crime plummeting as a result of it. If people believe that their illegal behaviour might be captured on screen or on video tape, they are far less likely to do wrong. There is no doubt that the best deterrent of all is an increased chance of being caught.
CCTV is invaluable aid to detection, too. The murderer of Bradford girl Rachel Barraclough was caught and convicted largely because of images captured on video tape, and there are many other, less dramatic, instances of it helping to bring people to justice.
But CCTV could be even more useful if the quality of the images was stronger and clearer. That is why Bradford Council wants to upgrade the equipment it uses. It wants to spend £500,000 on new cameras which will produce sharper images in colour, allowing better descriptions of suspects to be circulated.
Many would think that to be money well spent. However, there is clearly some serious concern over the potential misuse and abuse of CCTV, and that concern is bound to increase if the scheme is improved and/or extended. Steps do need to be taken to reassure the public.
The Trades Union Council's suggestion of public viewing areas would probably prove impractical and too costly. Perhaps an acceptable compromise arrangement could be special open days at which the workings of the scheme could be demonstrated and explained to representatives of concerned organisations. That might help to alleviate some of the fears and prevent this important crime-fighting tool from being hampered by controversy.
(Letters to the Editor, T&A, 14/11/98)
SIR - There you go again, claiming in your editorial on CCTV that "closed-circuit television has proved its worth as an important tool in the fight against crime. We regularly carry reports of crime plummeting as a result of it" (T&A, November 5).
There is no evidence that these spy cameras have had any significant effect on crime in this district. Neither is there evidence that they've caught many criminals.
For two years now, we have been calling for a proper independent evaluation of the effectiveness of these cameras. The fact that both the Council and the police oppose such an evaluation speaks for itself. Councillor Jack Womersley has admitted: "It is not actually there to catch criminals. It is a deterrent to make people feel that they can use an area safely."
If they're just there to make people feel better, then there's absolutely no point in spending another £500,000 of our money to add to the £1.5 million already spent.
It's a complete waste of money and an affront to public privacy.
Antony Taylor, 1 in 12 Club, Albion Street, Bradford.
*Editor's note: "We stand by our editorial comment "
(Letters to the Editor, T&A, 24/11/98)
Sir - Re Anthony Taylor's claim that "CCTV is a complete waste of money".
There they go again, those bleeding heart liberals at the 1 in 12 Club and their anti-CCTV campaign.
The truth is we NEED these cameras to catch muggers and rapists.
B. Stimpson, Stephenson St, Bradford 7
T&A, 26/11/98
A father-of-two who murdered Bradford teenager Rachel Barraclough is planning to appeal against his sentence.
Stephen Hughes, 47, was jailed for life in September this year after a jury unanimously found him guilty of luring the 18-year-old churchgoer to her death.
A year earlier Rachel, of Carrbottom Road, Bankfoot, was found stabbed to death on waste land in Wakefield, just a few miles away from Hughes' home in Stanley Street.
Today Hughes' wife Irene said she would stand by her husband.
She said she had lost four stone since her husband was charged with murder and had not returned to work as a dinner lady since the trial.
"I just want the truth to come out," she said. "My husband is innocent. My husband is planning to appeal. He writes to me and asks me how 1 am and how the boys are."
Rachel was the girlfriend of Hughes' eldest son Carl, 21, who had been cheating on the Bradford teenager. The trial at Leeds Crown Court heard how Carl and Rachel had argued after he had been seeing another woman.
Hughes arranged to meet Rachel, pretending that he was trying to help the couple sort out their problems. The jury was shown CCTV footage of Rachel with Hughes close to where she was found murdered.
Letters to the editor, T&A, 2/12/98
SIR - I was sorry to read of the intended retirement of Councillors Ruth Redfern, Marilyn Beeley and Jack Womersley Having worked closely with these three individuals over the years 1 would like to pay tribute to their hard work and contribution to Bradford during their terms of office.
Ruth Redfern has worked tirelessly in her various roles both in representing her constituents and in shaping the strategic , development of the city, through inward investment and the many improvements to the city centre.
Marilyn Beeley has also been a dedicated councillor and hard-working Lord Mayor. As chairman of the Licensing Sub Committee she worked hard to improvethe quality of service provided by hackney carriages and licensed premises across the district. I found her to be fair and very professional.
Jack Womersley has also made many contributions to the city He was instrumental in developing some of the earliest Council and police partnerships through the Safer Cities Project. As a result Bradford pioneered some of the first public place CCTV coverage in the country on the city centre car parks.
I wish all three well and thank them for the years of service they have given to the city.
Les Vasey (ex-superintendent, Bradford Central Police), Temple Rhydding Drive, Baildon.
Letters to the Editor, T&A 2/12/98
SIR - The only true test to see if "CCTV is d complete waste of money" or a "Good way to catch muggers and rapists", as B Stimpson suggests (T&A Letters, November 24) is to switch them off and see if the crime rate goes up.
If it does, then we could measure the effect and see if they are truly worthwhile or not. I suspect those who operate the cameras would not be in favour of such a scientific test.
Dr David Halsall, Maisis Road, Keighley.
Letters to the Editor, T&A, 11/12/98
SIR - Bradford is one of the top three safest cities in the country. The reason for this is the excellent police force of our city and the Council's very professional operators of CCTV systems. It therefore came as somewhat of a shock to read that Dr David Halsall (letters December 2) thought we ought to switch CCTV off for a month and see and measure what happened.
I wonder what the good doctor would say to any victims of crime in that month if their assailant went unpunished. Well he would not have to, the police, have that onerous role as well. Those of us with a community safety role rely on CCTV to deter criminals and to help us to catch them. CCTV is the silent witness waiting to help the police.
Only last week Leeds City centre was brought to a standstill by a hoax bomb. I hope the CCTV footage catches that person who committed that crime. I, for one, have not forgotten the Jamie Bulger case.
If the good doctor is looking for an academic role then I suggest he turns his gas and electric off for a month and then tells us if he misses it. The sooner CCTV is modernised in Bradford the safer our citizens will feel and the criminals will be more reluctant to visit.
Councillor Jack Womersley, Hainsworth Moor Garth, Queensbury.
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