The Government will not permanently install closed-circuit television systems in public places to maintain overall law and order.
Secretary for Security TK Lai made the statement to legislators today, saying many government departments have installed CCTV cameras in public places or areas under their purview.
However, Mr Lai said Hong Kong will not follow London's example in installing permanent CCTV systems in public places to maintain overall law and order as the Government has to consider privacy protection as well as the legal purposes and necessity for CCTV installation.
Mr Lai said the Office of the Privacy Commissioner for Personal Data issued the latest guidelines on CCTV surveillance in March which state the Government has to conduct a privacy impact assessment before using CCTV systems.
He also said the assessment has to consider three factors: Is the use of the CCTV system appropriate and necessary for the given situation? Are there any alternative means which are less intrusive to achieve the same objective? Have the data users acted responsibly and transparently in their use of CCTV?
The Government will continue to listen to different views in the community, Mr Lai added.
