Police clock number plates to spot drivers from outside West

THE use of Automatic Number Place Recognition (ANPR) technology to enforce laws governing essential travel is needed and necessary during the national lockdown, Devon and Cornwall’s Police and Crime Commissioner has said.

Alison Hernandez said she welcomes the force’s use of ANPR following the worrying rise in deaths from coronavirus.

Shaun Sawyer, Chief Constable of Devon and Cornwall Police, said ANPR cameras across the region would be used to make sure only essential journeys are being made.

As well as static cameras at the roadside in numerous – and often undisclosed – locations across the region, every officer in the force has access to an ANPR app which allows them to access live information about vehicles they pass.

His message came after there were increasing concerns by residents in parts of Devon and Cornwall that second-home owners were again fleeing the capital in an effort to avoid the virus – and potentially increasing the risks to people in the South West. On Christmas Eve, a group of holidaymakers from a Tier Four area hoping to spend Christmas in the Isles of Scilly – the only place which was still under Tier One at that point – were sent packing by police who met them at the airport.

Just a few days ago, Commissioner Hernandez even went as far as to urge celebrities to lead by example – and stay away from both counties – as the third national lockdown was put in place.

Ms Hernandez said use of ANPR technology is necessary during this third national lockdown. She added: “Covid is spreading rapidly across the whole of the UK, not least because this new strain of the virus is far more contagious.

“We need to be doing everything we possibly can to prevent the spread of coronavirus. The people of Devon and Cornwall have done a great job so far, which is reflected in our case rates which are among the very lowest in the whole country, but we must not become complacent.”