At the same time Police have obtained new powers to stop the public and press photographing them, they have obtained a new means of filming the public.
Sherpa camera in Clerkenwell Green
Sherpa camera in Clerkenwell Green
Big Brother State?
The Met have bought 7 Sherpa remotely operated surveillance cameras. The cameras are unusual not only because they can beam their signal back to the Met’s cctv base by radio wave. But also because the £25,000 cameras can be deployed at short notice by two personnel, who attach the camera to the bottom of a lamppost which it then remotely climbs. The cameras have their own power supply, which gives them an operating time of 48 hours.
The Met is required to apply to local authorities for permission to operate these gadgets. The Met say no microphone is included in the machine. The Met’s press office comments …
“Within the context of public order policing the MPS uses these cameras to provide additional CCTV coverage for public events, where there are gaps within static CCTV coverage to allow command teams running the policing of events to monitor crowd safety and dynamics”.
The camera photographed was on a lamppost in Clerkenwell Green on Mayday (1st May 2009). I noticed it photographed it, then an hour or so later I found it had been removed.
The machines are made by Norton Integrated Systems Ltd.
Link to the manufactures website:
http://www.nortonsystems.co.uk/sherpa/
The Met is required to apply to local authorities for permission to operate these gadgets. The Met say no microphone is included in the machine. The Met’s press office comments …
“Within the context of public order policing the MPS uses these cameras to provide additional CCTV coverage for public events, where there are gaps within static CCTV coverage to allow command teams running the policing of events to monitor crowd safety and dynamics”.
The camera photographed was on a lamppost in Clerkenwell Green on Mayday (1st May 2009). I noticed it photographed it, then an hour or so later I found it had been removed.
The machines are made by Norton Integrated Systems Ltd.
Link to the manufactures website:
http://www.nortonsystems.co.uk/sherpa/ 
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