The BBC reported on the 7th May 2008 that the UK government is providing funding for 15 more councils to get lie detectors in order to identify benefit cheats. They claim that the technology will save £400 million a year in unlawful claims.

The system has already been tried and is reported by the 7 councils who have piloted it, to have saved hundreds of thousands.

The technology analyses speech patterns identifying those whose patterns are suspect, it is technology already used in the insurance industry.

It is surprising that civil rights groups have not reported the danger of this technology being used it such a way.

The reported benefits are not worth the sacrifice to our personal freedoms. The savings are not worth the detriment to our rights and may even label people incorrectly as fraudsters.

It can not be accepted practice for government departments to use technology which is also used in a similar way by communist states to put down protest and catch dissidents. To covertly analysis people's speech without their knowledge has Human Rights implications and its legality is questionable.

This is the thin edge of the wedge and should be resisted in Northern Ireland at all cost and unlike the UK mainland, council staff and councillors who attempt to steal our rights in this way should be prepared to lose their jobs and the Northern Ireland public prepared to kick them out.