Snoopers spying on us 1,400 times a day

There were 519,260 requests from public bodies to 'communications providers' such as telephone and internet companies.

The Chief Surveillance Commissioner, Sir Christopher Rose, gave voice to the concerns of millions of householders over the growing trend for councils to rake over private data such as phone bills and websites visited.

Jenny Paton and Tim Joyce, who were spied on for three weeks by Poole Borough Council to check that they lived in the correct school catchment area

He said there is often 'poor oversight' of those authorising sensitive probes, who were also widely inexperienced.

Sir Christopher accused some councils of abusing the controversial anti-terror laws on intelligence gathering and called for better training of officers.

He said there is frequently a 'lack of understanding of the legislation' allowing them to collect secret information and that some displayed a 'serious misunderstanding of the concept of proportionality'.

His comments come days after it was revealed that council inspectors have been handed 1,043 powers to pry.

There have also been a number of high-profile cases where local authorities have targeted law-abiding residents.

Last year around 3,000 people are thought to have had their phone and email records examined by councils in the cause of investigating suspected dog fouling, littering and, in one case, a possibly bogus faith healer.

A family in Poole, Dorset, were put under surveillance for three weeks over suspicions that they were living outside the catchment area of their child's school.

Of the 519,260 'intercept' requests made last year, the vast majority were by the police and security services. Some 1,707 requests were made by local authorities.

In comparison, there were in total 254,000 requests in the previous nine months and 439,000 in the 15 months before that  -  an average of 346,000 a year.

They allow public bodies to see details such as itemised phone bills and website records but are not 'bugging' requests because they do not allow monitoring of conversations.

The figures were contained in a report by the Interception of Communications Commissioner, Sir Paul Kennedy, released by the Government today as MPs broke for their summer holidays.

He claimed 'local authorities could make much more use of communications data as a powerful tool to investigate crime'.

However, a separate report by his fellow commissioner, Sir Christopher, released at the same time, criticised the behaviour of councils.

And Tory local government spokesman Eric Pickles said: 'Just because councils have these powers it doesn't mean they have to use them. It is wholly disproportionate to use them to check if a child is going to the right school.'

Local government chiefs say homeowners should not be spied on by town hall officials using anti-terror powers for trivial reasons.

They have called for an end to surveillance operations aimed against those suspected of misdemeanours such as dog fouling or littering. The activities of the snoopers have damaged the reputation of local councils, according to the Local Government Association.

It called for an 'urgent review' of how surveillance under the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act (Ripa) has been carried out.

LGA chairman Sir Simon Milton said yesterday that the powers are vital to tackle fly tippers, rogue traders and council tax or housing benefit fraud.

'Our advice remains that, save in the most unusual and extreme of circumstances, it is inappropriate to use these powers for trivial matters.

'The leaders of the four political groups at the LGA also do not consider dog fouling or littering as matters which fall within the test of "necessary and proportionate".'

Home Secretary Jacqui Smith said the powers can make 'a real difference in delivering safer communities and protecting the public' but added: 'We need to ensure Ripa powers are used appropriately and are not undermined.'