Police in London solve 1 crime for every 1000 CCTV cameras. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/crime/6081549/One-crime -solved-for-every-1000-CCTV-cameras-senior-officer-claims.html< /a> Do you think cameras really keep us safer?

They will never replace the "bobby" on the street.

Frankly I dislike the fact that when I visit the UK I'm constantly being watched and video taped.

This sounds like something they would have done in the former G.D.R. and not "free" England.

Without entering myself into the Big Brother debate - Yes, I think they help... They do help put *some* opportunist criminals off, and they help in conviction.

The problem is, a rediculously high number of the CCTV cameras either don't work or aren't recording. So, beyond deterrence, there is no point them even being there.

An additional eye which can see something we miss out helps. Store cameras in US reduced crime a lot. Cameras at traffic reduces lots of death. yeah it helps.

I read somewhere that London had the most CCTV coverage than anywhere else in the world (thus Banksy's constant rip). The first question is, has the crime rate statistics dropped in the years since these cameras were up? The second question is, if so, is it worth the loss of privacy? Your Scotland Yard online should provide you with the statistics.

I'm betting that there has been no significant drop in crime because there hasn't been a drop in any other mega-city such as NYC, LA, or Moscow since cameras have been put in. There has only been an increase in arrests. Most street crime is driven by drug abuse and drug abusers really don't give a shit who's watching until after they get caught.