[ad_1]
Rotorua Mayor Tania Tapsell at a meeting in July.
photo: LDR/Laura Smith
There are fears police and councils could lose access to New Zealand’s network of more than 1000 motorway CCTV cameras – a move one mayor says could have “catastrophic consequences”.
The New Zealand Transport Agency Waka Kotahi said it was reviewing how personal information from the cameras was shared with third parties for privacy reasons, but had not yet made a decision and was listening to feedback.
Rotorua Mayor Tania Tapsell said the revocation of access was “unreasonable” and wanted the Government to waive the city’s costs or help pay for about $675,000 to replace 19 NZTA cameras used for community safety purposes.
photo:
Rotorua Lakes MP Don Paterson told Local Democracy Report he was told the cameras would be checked after a collision on Te Ngae Road and State Highway 30 last month.
He worries that losing network access could affect police investigations, community safety programs and even insurance claims.
“Safety is the priority. People’s lives are at stake.”
Patterson raised his experience with the crash at Wednesday’s community and regional development committee meeting and asked if the council would “try to prevent” the revocation of access rights.
Rotorua Lakes councillor Don Paterson is concerned the council will not be able to use the NZ Transport Agency’s CCTV cameras.
photo: LDR/Laura Smith
Community and regional development group manager Jean-Paul Gaston said there had been “a number of discussions” across the country about maintaining access to the agency’s cameras.
The event was led by police but the council was interested in the outcome.
Tapsell said she had written to the transport minister, the police minister and the agency’s chairman to voice parliament’s concerns.
“(Revoking access) will have serious consequences.”
She said she has “not yet received a satisfactory response” but will continue to advocate for the right to retain access.
Fear of “catastrophic consequences”
In a letter to Police Minister Mark Mitchell in April, Tapsell said the city was monitored 24/7 by the council’s CCTV network, which included 19 NZ Transport Agency cameras.
“We have recently been advised that following a privacy impact assessment, the NZ Transport Agency will be returning these cameras to full operation, which means our community safety teams will no longer be able to access them or freely access footage from the cameras to assist police,” she said.
“In many cases our team are able to provide CCTV footage to local police to assist with investigations and prosecutions, ensuring those who choose to commit crime are held accountable.”
Tapsell said it would cost about $675,000 to replace local cameras and fill the “huge gaps” in the council’s network and requested funding for that.
In a letter to NZTA board chair Simon Bridges in May, Tapsell asked for a waiver to allow the council to continue using the 19 cameras, or for NZTA to help fund replacements.
Tapsell told Local Democracy Report that CCTV was a vital tool in the fight against crime and she wrote the letter to inform people that revoking access would have “catastrophic consequences”.
“Replacing and duplicating these measures would impose significant and unnecessary costs on taxpayers.”
Rotorua Lakes MP Don Paterson at the July meeting.
photo: LDR/Laura Smith
She said the council “only uses them to track vehicles that have been involved in crime or registered as stolen”.
“We strongly urge ministers to ensure our local access to these cameras is maintained.”
A NZTA spokesman said police and some councils had access to the agency’s CCTV camera network, while councils had access through their regional transport operations centres.
“The New Zealand Transport Agency is reviewing how we share personal information from CCTV cameras with other agencies in accordance with our obligations under the Privacy Act 2020.
“We understand the importance of these cameras to the council and police for law enforcement. We are listening carefully to feedback from the council and police and have not yet made a final decision on potential changes to third-party access to our cameras.”
The number of cameras in its network changes constantly as they are installed, retired or transferred from police to the NZTA. As of May 31, there were 1148 cameras in its network.
The agency’s website says its cameras are used to manage land transport services, improve services, enhance the network and provide a safer land transport system.
Examples include identifying and managing incidents related to road emergencies and motor vehicle accidents, dangerous behaviour, destructive behaviour (such as vandalism), the functionality of assets and the proper use of bus lanes.
The New Zealand Transport Agency plans to take over the operation of traffic safety cameras, including speed cameras and red light cameras, from police in stages from next month to June 2025, a police spokesman said.
“Police will continue to access data and footage captured by cameras operated by the New Zealand Transport Agency on a case-by-case basis to assist with investigations and inquiries. This access will be consistent with the principles of the Privacy Act,” a spokesperson said.
The spokesman said the switch would not affect police’s current access to other available security footage.
The minister and police were contacted for comment.
LDR is a local news organisation co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air
[ad_2]
Source link
