POLICE were yesterday granted powers to use traffic cameras in the fight against terrorism.
Ministers waived the 1998 Data Protection Act to allow images to be beamed straight to Scotland Yard.
Cops have been granted access to London’s 1,500 congestion charge cameras.
It means officers can watch “real time” pictures of every car entering the city.
The owner can be identified in seconds through number-plate recognition.
Police used the cameras to trace the routes of the two Mercedes used in the attempted June 29 bomb attacks in the capital. Under the new rules, the information can be used only for national security — and NOT to fight ordinary crime.
Home Office minister Tony McNulty said last night: “The Metropolitan Police believe it’s necessary due to the enduring, vehicle-borne terrorist threat to London.”
But Lib Dem Home Affairs spokesman Nick Clegg accused the Government of using the London cameras as a “Trojan Horse” to secure unprecedented access to information on motorists’ movements
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