Wrong, wrong, wrong!
For chuff's sake I wish the media would stop atgging every discussion of RIPA with the words 'originally designed to fight terrorism' or 'anti-terrorism legislation'. It is NOT, I repeat NOT specifically anti-terrorism legislation and never has been. It is a bunch of regulations that tell authorities how, when and if they can carry out certain types of investigation and what precautions, checks and balances must be in place before this can happen and for it to be legitimate.
That's investigation for ANY offence not necessarily anti-terrorism, not even necessarily for a serious crime.
I'm no fan of uk gov or the ongoing strangulation of the definition of 'private life' but dammit if I've got some pikey twat dumping lorry loads of tires at the end of my street then I want someone to do something about it and if that means setting up a hidden camera or having someone from the council follow their van then what is really wrong with that?
If I can't let my kids (not that I have any) play on the designated playing field because ignorant bastards are forever letting their dogs shit all over it and not cleaning it up then what am I supposed to do? Watch the field myself and ring the council every time I see someone leaving a dog egg behind in the hope that a quick response SWAT team will descend from the sky Minority Report stylee and apprehend the faeces abandoning miscreant?
There are very strict guidelines on the circumstances in which the types of covert surveillance or interception that RIPA deals with are used. If there is a problem with councils not following the correct procedures or using these methods when other less intrusive methods are available then, yes, that is a problem and it should be stomped on but if it's genuinely the only way to catch some fucker then I'm pretty much all for it.
It is NOT anti-terrorism legislation. Stop using the the fucking word 'terrorism' it's incorrect besides being pretty much meaningless these days and unhelpful.