A packed Monmouth Priory listened intently for more than two hours at the public meeting to discuss Monmouth Town Council's recent decision to remain outside of the CCTV Camera Partnership in Monmouthshire.

The meeting was chaired by Chamber Secretary Brian Ramsey and included input from the Town Council, Police, Monmouthshire County Council and the other three Town Councils involved in the scheme (Abergavenny, Caldicot and Chepstow).

Town Councillor Nick Hackett Pain spoke for about 50 minutes, including questions, about why Monmouth Town Council had accepted his recommendations not to re-join the scheme.

The main thrust of his argument was that there was a lack of discernible public demand, no need for the cameras because of a lack of crime in the areas covered by the cameras themselves and they did not represent value for money for the taxpayers of the town.

Next to speak were Superintendent Johnson and Inspector Boycott of Gwent Police, both of whom emphasised that, whilst they would obviously prefer to have CCTV available to them as an additional tool, they would nevertheless ensure that their officers worked diligently to deliver the quality of service that the public deserved with or without CCTV cameras.

Brian Ramsey read a statement from Counc Paul Wadsworth, Abergavenny Town Councillor, who confirmed the partnership working was significantly improved; additional funding was being identified for new equipment (either from within the MCC budget and the three towns involved were benefiting from this additional funding and better co-operation.

Counc Ned Heywood (Chepstow Town Council) provided a clear picture of how effectively the CCTV system could be used to target particular crime hotspots and make a real difference in reducing crime figures.

Mr Ramsey concluded the meeting by stating the three areas that Monmouth Town Council had based their decision on (demand, need and value for money) had all hopefully been addressed by the various speakers and statements received.

Public feeling in Monmouth is such that there is a discernible public demand (the debate at times was quite passionate and there were many questions from the audience) for CCTV to ensure that people feel safe and the Town Council has a clear responsibility to address the issue of community safety.

The need for the cameras to detect more crime can be addressed by re-joining the scheme and taking advantage of the improved technology, funding and partnership working that is now the norm. Finally, the value for money argument can hopefully be satisfied by the evidence provided by all who remain involved; a positive approach to partnership working, coupled with improved technology can lead to a better quality of service, but only if your town is involved in the scheme. He said Monmouth Town Council should listen to the opinions and feelings of the people of Monmouth and reconsider their decision not to pay £12,000 and re-join the scheme.