Inverness CCTV Upgrade Urgently Needed

Inverness's unreliable analogue cameras installed 15 years ago must be urgently upgraded, says councillor.

17:23 14 April 2021

A call to upgrade outdated CCTV cameras in Inverness has been made to make residents and businesses feel more safe and secure. 

 

Councillor Duncan Macpherson, who has witnessed a vicious brawl on Castle Street last year, said that £100,000 funding must be raised for the scheme. There is also a call for the CCTV control room to be extended to include cameras watching over Kessock Bridge and the main traffic routes in the city centre. 

 

At a community safety committee meeting, an officer said he plans to source the money to upgrade the CCTV control room from underspends throughout the council area. 

 

Councillor Macpherson, who is a member of the Community Safety Partnership, said: "I warmly welcome the news that the CCTV cameras in Inverness are to be upgraded, from the old unreliable analogue cameras installed around 15 years ago.

 

"I first raised my concerns in September last year after witnessing a violent street brawl on Castle Street, Inverness.

 

"The CCTV camera that should have captured the incident had been removed from the corner of Inverness Town House because of the scaffolding required for the ongoing building works.

 

"When I put in my freedom of information request to Police Scotland and Highland Council on the efficiency of the CCTV cameras, I received the information I needed to demonstrate that several CCTV cameras were damaged and not working as required.

 

"I set up a meeting with the council leader Margaret Davidson and the city manager David Haas to discuss these concerns."