LANCASHIRE Constabulary has come under fire for using controversial ‘spy powers’.

Research published by civil liberties and privacy campaign group Big Brother Watch highlighted the use of ‘directed surveillance’, which is carried out by police forces under the controversial Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act (RIPA).

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Direct surveillance is a form of covert surveillance that is conducted in places other than residential premises or private vehicles.

The campaign group also requested details of how many times Lancashire Constabulary had used informers and ‘intrusive surveillance’, which is covert surveillance carried out in residential premises or private vehicles, but this was refused.

The figures show that in the 2010- 2012 financial years, police in Lancashire used directed surveillance 419 times.

However, the use of these powers is decreasing. In 2010 they were used 182 times, but this had fallen to 108 by 2012, a decrease of 41 per cent. The RIPA sets out a number of ways that surveillance powers can be used.

This includes preventing and detecting crime and for national security purposes. The powers can also be used by other public bodies, which use surveillance to detect benefit fraud and investigate environ-mental health and trading standards issues.

Emma Carr, director of Big Brother Watch, said: “Police should not be able to keep the details secret of how and why members of the public are spied on.”