ROAD tax dodgers and fly-tippers could be targeted with the use of CCTV if a councillor's wishes are adopted.

Coun Tim O'Kane wants Hyndburn Council to move beyond using its cameras to catch benefit fraudsters and look at other possibilities.

His comments follow a recent report by Judge Fordham, the Government's assistant surveillance commissioner, who questioned whether the council had recognised the full extent of CCTV's uses.

At the moment, the council and the police have to get permission to covertly follow someone suspected of wrong-doing by filling out a form.

This form has to be completed under the RIPA Act 2000 (Regulation of Investigatory Powers) to protect human rights, as set out in the Human Rights Act 1998. But Coun O'Kane said: "I don't believe the council is using CCTV as much as they could. From what I understand there are a whole host of possibilities where they could be used to catch people who dodge their road tax or drop litter.

"We had Judge Fordham visit Hyndburn in July and he said the council should look at using them more. I know people ask that we should do more to tackle these things and I believe CCTV could be used more to that."

But former Hyndburn councillor Adrian Shurmer has rejected any move to increase surveillance. He said: "We are living in a surveillance society. We have a Government who wants everyone else under control."

Mr Shurmer, 70, of Lyndon Avenue, Great Harwood, said: "It is a means of keeping an eye on you. Whatever we do, the Government is spying on us. This is a really dreadful country because no one is able to stand up to the Government."

Hyndburn has a £160,000 CCTV system that works from a state-of-the-art suite in Accrington police station, where trained staff watch more than 30 screens with pictures beamed from 'spies in the skies' positioned all over Hyndburn.

The system replaced old cameras that monitored Accrington town centre in April this year, and cover has been extended to Great Harwood, Rishton, Clayton-le-Moors, Baxenden and Oswaldtwistle.

Sgt Claire Holbrook, of Accrington police said: "CCTV is really useful in the fight against crime.

"For instance, we had a lad a while back who was stealing from people's handbags and we got authority to follow him. He was subsequently charged after we caught him on CCTV."