‘Mistakes made’ over Birmingham surveillance cameras

West Midlands Police Authority has admitted mistakes were made in the way 200 surveillance cameras were put up in largely Muslim areas of Birmingham.

The cameras, some of which were hidden, were paid for with £3m of government money earmarked for tackling terrorism.

But the force had to apologise and later commissioned an independent review after angry residents said they had not been consulted.

The report said it put relations with the Muslim community back 10 years.

The scheme, called Project Champion, involved cameras being put up by the Safer Birmingham Project (SBP), made up of the city council, police and agencies in the Washwood Heath and Sparkbrook districts.