Calendar An icon of a desk calendar. Cancel An icon of a circle with a diagonal line across. Caret An icon of a block arrow pointing to the right. Email An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of the Facebook "f" mark. Google An icon of the Google "G" mark. Linked In An icon of the Linked In "in" mark. Logout An icon representing logout. Profile An icon that resembles human head and shoulders. Telephone An icon of a traditional telephone receiver. Tick An icon of a tick mark. Is Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes. Is Not Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes with a diagonal line through it. Pause Icon A two-lined pause icon for stopping interactions. Quote Mark A opening quote mark. Quote Mark A closing quote mark. Arrow An icon of an arrow. Folder An icon of a paper folder. Breaking An icon of an exclamation mark on a circular background. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Caret An icon of a caret arrow. Clock An icon of a clock face. Close An icon of the an X shape. Close Icon An icon used to represent where to interact to collapse or dismiss a component Comment An icon of a speech bubble. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Ellipsis An icon of 3 horizontal dots. Envelope An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Home An icon of a house. Instagram An icon of the Instagram logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. Magnifying Glass An icon of a magnifying glass. Search Icon A magnifying glass icon that is used to represent the function of searching. Menu An icon of 3 horizontal lines. Hamburger Menu Icon An icon used to represent a collapsed menu. Next An icon of an arrow pointing to the right. Notice An explanation mark centred inside a circle. Previous An icon of an arrow pointing to the left. Rating An icon of a star. Tag An icon of a tag. Twitter An icon of the Twitter logo. Video Camera An icon of a video camera shape. Speech Bubble Icon A icon displaying a speech bubble WhatsApp An icon of the WhatsApp logo. Information An icon of an information logo. Plus A mathematical 'plus' symbol. Duration An icon indicating Time. Success Tick An icon of a green tick. Success Tick Timeout An icon of a greyed out success tick. Loading Spinner An icon of a loading spinner. Facebook Messenger An icon of the facebook messenger app logo. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Facebook Messenger An icon of the Twitter app logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. WhatsApp Messenger An icon of the Whatsapp messenger app logo. Email An icon of an mail envelope. Copy link A decentered black square over a white square.

Rail staff to be equipped with body-worn cameras

Post Thumbnail

Rail staff in Scotland are to be equipped with body cameras as part of a crackdown against passenger aggression.

ScotRail is looking at deploying 230 of the devices for its frontline workers to protect them from physical and verbal attacks. It follows a proposed national roll-out of the cameras by Police Scotland.

Privacy campaigners have warned that public bodies are increasingly using “intrusive surveillance” when the case for doing so has not been made.

The rail operator is seeking bidders to supply and maintain the cameras and the monitoring system over three years following a trial in 2015.

That was held in response to a rise in assaults on staff, which rail bosses maintain is an ongoing problem.

A ScotRail Alliance spokeswoman said: “These cameras will help to make the working environment as safe as possible for all staff and customers.

“We do not tolerate violence of any kind on the railway and will do everything to assist British Transport Police in investigating any incidents and these cameras are a tool to help us do so.”

ScotRail insisted the cameras would only be activated during anti-social behaviour incidents, adding that, while staff will be encouraged to wear them, their use will be optional and targeted in aggression hotspots.

Rail chiefs refused to reveal the value of the tender, but said costs will be offset in part by reducing sick leave.

Renate Samson, the chief executive of Big Brother Watch, claimed the roll-out of the devices by ScotRail “should be met with caution”.

She added: “Whilst many public bodies are deploying these intrusive surveillance tools in order to improve safety, the evidence to support their use remains uncertain.

“Staff wearing the technology must be trained to use the cameras correctly and must, without fail, ensure passengers are clear if they are being recorded.

“Research exists to show that attacks on staff can actually increase if the public are unclear when they are being filmed.”

Body-worn cameras have been used by police in the north-east for several years. Police Scotland chiefs, who hail the technology for its evidential value, are looking at a national roll-out.

Calum Steele, the Scottish Police Federation’s general secretary, agreed the cameras have many benefits, but has called for debate on their affordability.