Councils come in for a lot of criticism for the tactic of employing so-called snoopers to police their by-laws and, as highlighted today, to monitor their own staff.

And at a time when swingeing cuts are being imposed, some might argue that spying on workers swinging the lead is not the best use of increasingly precious resources.

But it is precisely because of the outrageous abuse of the system like the one featured in our report today that monitoring of staff has to happen.

Sickness levels at Bradford Council remain above the national average, and those who are taking unnecessary sick days need to be dealt with fairly but firmly.

Whilst the vast majority of staff are undoubtedly extremely diligent and take no more than their entitlement, there is unfortunately a small minority who are effectively taking money from the taxpayer by falsely claiming sick pay.

Covert surveillance allowed under the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000 is a powerful tool and needs to be used sensibly to avoid criticism of operating a ‘Big Brother’ culture.

But in these straitened times, anything that can be done to discourage this sort of dishonesty should be welcomed.