Big Brother is watching more people in Kent than anywhere else in Britain, according to a study out today.

Kent County Council has been named as the highest user of controversial surveillance powers in the UK, according to the report by Big Brother Watch.

These can include covert techniques such as phone hacking, following a suspect and opening mail in a bid to catch offenders - such as rogue traders and benefit fraudsters.

Big Brother Watch campaigns on a number of privacy issues - including legislation that allows local authorities and other public bodies to use surveillance powers to monitor the public.

Its study found that KCC made use of the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act (RIPA) - designed to investigate serious crime and terrorism - 315 times in the period from 2008 to 2011.

KCC's annual total number of surveillance cases has actually fallen - from 290 in 2008/09, to 93 in 2009/10 and to 80 in the 2010/11.

However, its three-year total saw the authority rise from ninth place nationally to the top of the table in just one year.

The second highest area was Newcastle, where the surveillance powers were used 290 times since 2008.

"this could be phone hacking, opening of mail, following a vehicle, following an individual, even asking your neighbours about you…” – anna carr, from big brother watch

Medway Council recorded 28 surveillance operations in the three-year period.

Big Brother Watch spokesman Anna Carr said: "We looked into why local authorities have been using these powers and whether they are justified.

"Kent's been using RIPA powers for things like intellectual property crime, fraud and trading standards.

"This could be phone hacking, opening of mail, following a vehicle, following an individual, even asking your neighbours about you.

"We are questioning whether these are things local authorities should be doing, or if it's for other people to be looking at.

"We've seen cases in the past where people have been put under extremely intrusive surveillance and they've only found out by accident.

"If we hadn't written this report it's very doubtful whether the people of Kent would be aware that all this is going on."

RIPA regulates the use of a number of covert investigatory techniques, not all of which are available to KCC.

The three types of techniques available to local authorities are: acquiring communications data, including telephone billing information or customer details; covert surveillance of individuals in public places; and the use of undercover operatives.

KCC trading standards manager Mark Rolfe said: "The kind of offences we investigate are serious criminality - we have a good track record in doing it.

"Our interest and our direction from the elected members from KCC is to protect communities in Kent and that's what we use these powers for.

"KCC takes very seriously its obligations not to interfere unnecessarily in people's lives - we only target people who commit serious crime affecting the most vulnerable people in our communities.

"Our usage has actually fallen during that period - all I can assume is that other authorities' use has fallen even more."