The Isle of Man is in danger of ’sleepwalking into a surveillance society’.

That’s the grim warning from the island’s information commissioner Iain McDonald, in his annual report to Tynwald.

He states: ’In 2005, the then UK Information Commissioner produced a report that found that the UK was sleep walking into a surveillance society.

’It seems the Isle of Man, promoted as being one of the safest places in the British Islands to live, is in danger of doing the same.’

The use of surveillance systems continued to produce complaints and raise concerns over compliance, the report says.

He adds: ’During the year there seems to have been support from various quarters for the installation of surveillance systems. This could be seen as encouraging vigilantism.

’Proportionality and necessity must be at the forefront of any decision to install or use any surveillance system, whether by data controllers or individuals, to ensure that, as far as possible, the privacy of individuals is maintained.’

In the section of the report that highlights issues faced, the commissioner highlights the ease and reducing cost with which surveillance systems could be installed.

’We have seen an increase in installations of CCTV on domestic properties, of "dashcams" in vehicles and the use of body-worn video cameras,’ he says.

’During the year the office has received many complaints from the public about the use of such systems, together with queries or complaints about the use of covert CCTV in public spaces, GPS trackers installed covertly in vehicles and location tracking apps installed on the private phones of employees.’

The use of CCTV often leads to an escalation of a dispute between neighbours rather than its resolution, he adds.

Mr McDonald, in his foreword, alludes to the imminent enforcement of the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and a new Law Enforcement Directive (LED). He admits his office - which includes three staff plus himself - may not be ready. ’There is no doubt that the advent of GDPR and LED, coupled with Freedom of Information responsibilities, will have a significant impact on the office, requiring additional resource,’ Mr McDonald states.

’However, until the new laws are published, and duties defined, we are unable to identify what those resources are, it is difficult to see how the office can be prepared by May 2018.’