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Congestion Charging
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Merrick
Merrick
2148 posts

Re: Congestion Charging
Feb 28, 2003, 22:46
As cookie says, it'd be nice if they did do that kind of name and shame thing, but we all know that's not going to happen.

There are a number of vehicles that the police like to keep tabs on.

In the 80s the New Statesman did a feature on corrupt coppers and, as part of their investigation, paid a bent copper to get them the owenr details of some vehicle registrations. They used ones from the staff at New Stateman.

What came back was more than they expected - the editors car was on a list that was an adjunct to the Stolen Vehicles Register; a watched cars list that, whenever the number was checked in, it was logged where and when it was seen. The state was watching the guy for being a prminent lefty writer.

Such a list must still exist (why would they have scrapped it?), and we have to wonder who else is on it. The new cameras will automate the logging, making it much more complete, and able to handle many more vehicles.

And it ain't just the CC camers - the new genration speed cameras (the blue ones) log you at two points on the road, and if you did the distance in to short a time they send you a ticket. Vehicle identification cameras that radio out the info - can *you* think of a secondary use for that?

A friend of mine was stopped in Leeds last week cos the cameras had clocked thier van, and it is registered as white but has since been painted blue. The cameras told the cops, the cops pulled the van within minutes.

So it's not 'paranoia' about this stuff jim, it's actually what's happening.

The stopping of some vehicle use might be some consolation, but it's no justification for it.

In the same way, concern about urban pedestrian CCTV might make some people stop using shopping malls and use their local shops instead - that doesn't make me cheer it on or not mind that it is being used for state surveillance of 'subversive' people.
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