Should conversations in taxis ever be recorded? (From Oxford Mail)

Should conversations in taxis ever be recorded?

YES:

Colin Cook

Councillor Colin Cook, Oxford City Council

“A TAXI is a public service vehicle, it is not your own front room, or a confessional box, people recognise that their conversations can be overheard by the driver and moderate their conversations accordingly.

“From the complaints the council has received from passengers in the past, it often ends up being the passenger’s word against the driver’s and it is often impossible to resolve the situation to the complainant’s satisfaction without the firm evidence this system would provide. Meanwhile drivers have complained for years that the police take no action when passengers run off without paying or refuse to pay.

“The evidence provided by the proposed system would discourage passengers from not paying or from being aggressive or abusive to drivers.

Nick Pickles

“We are confident that audio recording is within the rules, and our initial contact with the Information Commissioner suggested we would be compliant.

“The audio recordings are encrypted, will only be accessible by the police or council officers, and will only be kept for up to 28 days to give sufficient time for someone to send us a complaint and for us to get hold of the driver and retrieve the data.

“The idea we should get rid of it as soon as the fare is over, simply would not work. The public is on our side. People who complain to us will now have the evidence to back them up.

“There are always people who have an axe to grind, but if they see the proposals in context, any reasonable person will see this proposal as reasonable and proportionate, which is the standard set by the Data Protection Act and the Information Commissioner.”

NO:

Nick Pickles, Big Brother Watch

“OXFORD City’s decision to force black cabs to record audio in addition to CCTV images has been greeted with widespread disdain, and once again brought Britain’s surveillance culture into the spotlight for the wrong reasons.

“The council can offer no figures for the problem it claims is so serious it warrants invading the privacy of every taxi passenger. There has been no public consultation and reports prepared for the council – available on its website – do not discuss audio recording. If there is a risk, why not give drivers the option of installing a panic button system that records short periods of audio?

“This policy is a totally disproportionate response to the problem. The assumption that everyone is a suspect and should have their movements and conversations recorded highlights a disturbing lack of respect for privacy – and indeed an alarming distrust of the general public by council officials.

“As anyone who has suffered at the hands of council officials misusing or losing data, being asked to trust officials with recordings of our personal conversations is not an adequate safeguard. If no recording exists, there is no risk to our privacy. This is a staggering invasion of privacy, being done with no evidence, no consultation and a total disregard for civil liberties. Big Brother now has big ears, and they are eavesdropping on your conversations with absolutely no justification. This sort of policy would not have been out of place in East Germany. I hope readers will share my view that it is absolutely not a policy that should be operating in Oxford.”