CCTV cameras in the Forest will be funded for one last year following a vote by district councillors – thereafter the costs will be handed over to local towns and parishes.

At last week's full council meeting on the district's budget, members suggested that savings made by not accepting a rise in their allowances could be used to fund CCTV instead.

Councillor Max Coborn said: "The police are dreading the removal of the CCTV from the Forest towns. If you shut these cameras off that would be the end of it, there would be no going back."

But Cllr Alastair Fraser pointed out: "I have sympathy with this scheme, but we've got to get it right. We cannot do everything with this saving and if we go for CCTV we can forget everything else."

Cllr Len Lawton: said: "CCTV is vital to our towns. We can not sit on our hands and do nothing."

Cllr Graham Morgan: "We need at least a year to decide on what we are going to do with CCTV in the future, as once you shut them they'd soon become obsolete. If we are not careful, we'd end up with criminal chaos."

Cllr Bruce Hogan suggested: "We need to revisit CCTV provision, but this council could afford it for one more year."

Cllr Brian Robinson suggested: "I suggest we make it a one off grant from our reserves to fund CCTV for one more year."

Cllr Di Martin pointed out that if they considered this: "We cannot work in isolation we need to get agreement across the district from town and parish councils for efficient CCTV in the future."

Cllr Philip Burford further suggested: "Instead, why not let the district council continue for another two months in the financial year 2011/12, which brings it past the election and let the new cabinet decide what they want to do after the election."

Cllr Keith Aburrow said: "Anybody in the community who wants to get rid of CCTV is because they have something to hide."

Cllr Burford reminded members: "It doesn't matter who pays for CCTV now whether it be town or parish councils or the district council, it's the local people who ultimately pay through the precept."

Councillors voted to fund CCTV provision from reserves for one more year, adding that the responsibility for its future provision lies with the town and parish councils.

A further one year's support for the cameras will cost £20,000.