CCTV - WHERE DID IT GO WRONG? CONCERNS OF A LOCAL TRADE REPRESENTATIVE
My name is James Kiernan and I’m the Unite the Union Shop Steward for the Lewes district hackney carriage drivers. I am writing this article to raise awareness about a huge problem which the local
councils are allowing to happen despite the issues being highlighted to them back in July 2024.
MANDATORY MUST MEAN COMPLIANT RIGHT?
Lewes DC, Eastbourne BC and Brighton & Hove City Council have allowed constant audio to be fitted into licensed hackney carriages and PHVs within all three licensed areas with many of the in-vehicle CCTV systems fitted by a company called Radio Relay.
The system installed has constant audio unless the client “requires a panic switch to be fitted” in which case the audio is a four minute timer. Since there is an additional cost of £96 to install the switch, the majority of systems don’t have them at all, having spent around £500 to buy the CCTV, unless they rent (which costs a lot more), which means the device is recording audio at all times, in direct contradiction to Southampton City Council vs Information Commissioner:
https://shorturl.at/XrwTr
MAYBE THE COUNCIL DOES NOT KNOW?
I’ve pointed this issue out several times to the Lewes/ Eastbourne taxi licensing team, a shared service, alerting them to this illegal and non-compliant practice which fails to observe Information Com- missioner’s Office regulations.
THEIR DATA PROTECTION OFFICER (DPO) WILL RESOLVE THIS SURELY!
The council has openly admitted that it is not getting any answers, saying: “the information governance team is unable to provide any further comments on this matter. If you are dissatisfied with the responses, you have the option to contact the ICO online:
https://shorturl.at/lfNwZ. If the ICO is dissatisfied, they will reach out to us directly to investigate.” Leaving me with no alternative but to do just that.
MAYBE SPELL IT OUT A LITTLE CLEARER? I even highlighted the case of Southampton vs IC,
30
where Southampton Council previously had constant audio, and lost the court case which ruled that constant audio is considered “far too intrusive.”
WHAT DOES THE ICO SAY?
The ICO ruling is that audio may NOT be constant, the code of practice states:
“Where there is audio, it must be permanently disabled, and only activated by means of a panic switch where justifiable.”
If a driver, or a passenger, activates the audio panic switch it “should” stay on until the issue ends and then be switched off.
This cannot be achieved on the Radio Relay system, which has no button control unless requested and paid for,
otherwise audio is permanent, but Lewes/
Eastbourne licensing refuses to act upon this potential breach of ICO regulations.
COULD IT BE MORE CONFUSING?
All three councils have made the installation of CCTV a mandatory condition of licence, the same way that Southampton and many other councils do.
Brighton and Hove City Council states in its Taxi and Private Hire Guidance or “Blue Book,” that: audio must always be active within a licensed vehicle whilst fulfilling a home to school contract.
This alone is in direct contradiction of the Southampton vs IC case, which was indeed about the use of constant audio. But where the drivers have paid for the panic switch and had it installed, this switch cannot satisfy the Brighton condition, as it is timed, not constant, meaning that this method of installation is either contrary to ICO regulations, or it is against Brighton and Hove “Blue Book” conditions.
Radio Relay has fitted these systems into hundreds of licensed vehicles and continues to fit them daily.
SURELY THE DRIVERS KNOW
To make things worse, (as if this were possible), the drivers have no idea that their audio is constant, only finding out when they have a need to retrieve data following an incident or allegation.
NOVEMBER 2024 PHTM
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