(Un)Happy Snapper

I recently posted a clip of the police harassing a man for taking photographs of them - even though it's not an offence. Well, it is now. From today, Section 76 of the Counter-Terrorism act outlaws photographing any member of the armed, intelligence (ho ho) or police forces if said photography could be useful to terrorists. (More commentary here, on the effect on freedom of association and political campaigning)

As we all know, the boys in blue will use any justification to avoid public scrutiny. We've all been aggressively filmed at peaceful demonstrations and I've always enjoyed seeing the compliment returned - particularly as the police are certainly not all Dixon of Dock Green. So remember, they work for us (except when they're simply the shock troops of the Thatcherite regime). Take photos. A picture of a copper doesn't aid terrorism and any terrorist worth their salt will know what a policeman looks like and where New Scotland Yard is. It's just another bullying tactic from a government and force divorced from their citizens. Policing by consent will never be achieved by alienating your public (by, for example, closing down one unit which treated peaceful protestors as 'domestic extremists' and secretly opening another one).