Consultation on new UK CCTV code of practice

The Home Office is running a consultation into a proposed new UK code of practice related to CCTV usage.

The consultation is the first step towards establishing a formal Code of Practice as promised in the Government's Protection of Freedoms Bill.

The proposals include:

* Establishing a checklist of actions to be carried out by CCTV operators before installing new cameras to check whether they are absolutely necessary;

* Developing industry standards for equipment to ensure it is reliable, effective and gathers images that are of sufficient quality and in a useable format;

* Improving public knowledge about systems in communities through consultation by police and local authorities and better public information; and

* Considering whether further guidance is needed on how long data collected by CCTV should be retained.

Crime Prevention Minister James Brokenshire said that the code would be introduced on an incremental basis, with local authorities and police required to have due regard to it straightaway. The Government will consider whether the code should be extended to other organisations, such as businesses and private security firms, in due course.

The consultation will run for 12 weeks. For further information click here.