Open AccessCCTV and Human Rights: the Fish and the Bicycle? An Examination of Peck V. United Kingdom (2003) 36 E.H.R.R. 41
Author(s) -
Caoilfhionn Gallagher
Publication year - 2002
Publication title -
surveillance and society
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.781
H-Index - 46
ISSN - 1477-7487
DOI - 10.24908/ss.v2i2/3.3378
Subject(s) - peck (imperial) , human rights , convention , law , government (linguistics) , political science , supreme court , the right to privacy , right to privacy , international human rights law , sociology , linguistics , philosophy , agronomy , biology
This paper analyses and considers the impact of a landmark decision by the European Court of Human Rights in January 2003 which highlighted the inadequacy of U.K. law in protecting the privacy of individuals captured on closed-circuit television (CCTV) cameras in public places. The domestic and Strasbourg decisions in the Peck case are assessed. Analysis of the subsequent responses of Government, the Courts and the media demonstrates that the lessons of Peck have yet to be learnt, and the Human Rights Act 1998 has failed to 'bring rights home' when it comes to Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR), which guarantees the citizen the right to respect for private life. Privacy in the U.K. is now at best a residual right: what's left after each of an array of competing concerns have their say.