MINISTER of Sport Tony Banks inspected a new 24-hour 'watch station' at Trafford Town Hall that will help combat crime and control football crowds. The hi-tech system means there is no hiding place for crooks in shopping centres and crime 'hotspots' in the borough. A wall of TV monitors linked to more than 100 CCTV cameras will help to reduce crime and disorder and improve community safety, say council chiefs. Some of the CCTV cameras will monitor crowds going to the Manchester United or Lancashire grounds. There is a direct link to the control room at Stretford police HQ.

The watch station will act as an out-of-hours call centre and a 'one stop shop' for all the council's emergency services. Control room staff will also monitor more than 5,000 community alarms in the borough. These are personal alarms used by elderly, disabled or vulnerable people in an emergency.

The council's deputy chief executive, Gary Pickering, says: "This is a major community initiative for the whole of Trafford and will play a key part in the borough's new crime and disorder reduction strategy."

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