Well done Richard Rhodes, this guy obviously has some idea I'm relieved to say, he deserves praise for speaking up.

Really RW? If it really is standard Police practice to invade peoples privacy, then they only have themselves to blame for the lack of respect from the public.

If the government did start full monitoring the public could just start using private encryption programs to retain their privacy. For every 'safe guard' the government try to impose there will be a 'white hat' hacker finding a work-around it is the nature of the internet.

How dare this commissioner poke his nose into this- it is a Police working practice which, as a civvy, he knows nothing and has not a jot of experience in! He has no mandate anyway.

"They already listen to our communications" ha ha well I'm sure they will get a lot out of my emails and facebook profile, or indeed probably most of the other posters on here.

However, if you are subversive, hooligan, terrorist, trouble maker, petty criminal or other form of low-life or scumbag, please be aware they will already have their eyes on you in one way or another, whether it's reading your emails arranging the next big coke shipment, covert cameras checking your disability claim or CCTV watching your movements around town, you will be under observation and you won't get away with it.
Mark my words laddie.

Will the Commissioner also address the way Cumbria Constabulary waste money every day of every year? A prime example is the single manning of Police vehicles. If an incident occurs which requires two officers, that means two vehicles and twice as much fuel used.

@The honest Critic - Quite right. There has been a sustained assault on our civil liberties over the past 30 years. And to take the view that 'they are only interested in those who pose a threat to national security', is naive in the extreme. Look at the way Police now regularly use legislation intended to tackle terrorism to routinely detain and question people who have NOTHING to do with terrorism. Our rights and civil liberties have been hard won - we should not sleepwalk our way into surrendering them.

They already read/listen to ALL our communications,and have done for many years,they are however unable to use it in court without having the correct documentation.
PaulM its not people who listen initially its machines with sophisticated algorithms to categorise.If you dont listen to ALL communications then you cant pick out likely suspects, so what the government want is to treat us all as suspects until proven otherwise.

Where will it stop ? Terrorists then BNP then whatever..... they use terrorism as an excuse but what is the real agenda ?

@Clive .
How naive . We find our lives being monitored and freedoms ever more restricted year on year . Big Brother is here . If the people ever decide to change this before total dictatorship is eventually enforced the in who's interest is national security and who will be the real threat to democracy and a free world ?
Reading private EMails and the new proposals to curb the press and Media are measures that are not coincidental .

People in the middle east have been fighting and dying for most of this year trying to regain their freedom and civil liberties from a despotic, tyrannical leadership. It amazes me how easily people here are willing to give up their right to privacy. Knowledge is power - the more you know about people the easier it is to control them. Everyone in this country makes jibes at government...imagine if that was made a criminal offence....your joke e-mail could suddenly land you a criminal record, maybe prison, these things have happened and worse in some countries. I was never sold on the idea of a Crime Commisioner but I am pleased that Richard Rhodes appears to be significantly more intelligent than some of the correspondents here. CCTV was 'sold' to us to keep us safe, now we use it to spy on mums taking kids to school or someone over-filling their dustbin....terrorists?, pedofiles? nah this is about control of the masses, Britain in 2012, everyone is a potential suspect....not the type of country I want to live in.