The cameras were switched on this week, the culmination of a long campaign by business owners to make the shopping centre safer.

Part of a $450,000 pre-election commitment made by Ann Sudmalis as she successfully contested the seat of Gilmore in 2013, the cameras are finally operational after lengthy deliberation by Shoalhaven City Council over their legality.

There is a plenty of research that shows CCTV coverage doesn’t necessarily reduce crime, which was used by anti-camera campaigner Adam Bonner when he took on Shoalhaven City Council over the cameras it installed in Nowra.

Historically, many of the problems encountered at Sanctuary Point have related to public drunkenness and antisocial behaviour. CCTV is unlikely to make a serious dent in the sort of opportunistic, spur-of-the-moment offences associated with intoxication. Someone off their head on drugs and/or alcohol is unlikely to be rational enough to think twice about hurling abuse or a punch.

Criminals contemplating a break-in or robbery are generally rational and will work out ways to conceal their identity or commit their offence out of the cameras’ field of view. If the camera coverage leaves no black spots they might even decide against the robbery. So it is important that the rear of the shopping centre is adequately covered either by council CCTV or by private systems that are clearly visible. 

This is not to suggest the cameras don’t have a place. They can be a great evidence gathering tool that can identify offenders, leading to arrests and convictions. They can also act as a deterrent to some crimes and foster a sense of security among residents.

The operation and upkeep of the cameras will come at a cost to ratepayers, as it has done in Nowra. 

Criminals won’t vanish overnight and visible policing will remain the best deterrent. But adding to the law and order armoury is a welcome move, worth the cost if it helps put wrongdoers out of circulation.