London ? Britain is taking its surveillance to a new level, strapping video cameras to the helmets of its famed bobbies – a move the government says will cut down on paperwork and help prosecute criminals.

By providing dramatic footage of victims, suspects and witnesses, judges and jurors will be able to “see and hear the incident through the eyes and ears of the officer at the scene,” Minister of State for Security Tony McNulty said.

The Home Office said it was allocating $6 million to fund the devices for Britain’s 42 police forces – enough to buy more than 2,000 cameras.

Police already use handheld cameras to monitor crowded events and the new head-mounted devices, worn around the ear or clipped on to a helmet, have been used on a trial basis by police in Plymouth, in southwestern England, since 2005. Similar cameras are used by security guards at sports venues to hunt for soccer hooligans.

The Association of Chief Police Officers, an independent body of senior police officials in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, gave the devices a tepid welcome, cautioning that courts might someday expect everything police said to be backed by video evidence.

“The introduction of personal digital recording equipment for police officers and staff brings benefits and risks,” the association said in a statement. “We need to guard against creating an expectation that all police activity ought to be supported by the use of digital recording technology.”

Britain’s Home Office said the cameras – which have enough memory to hold 24 hours of video – were not intended to record continuously. Officers would turn the devices on and off at their discretion, speaking into the camera after turning it on to explain where, when and why they were starting it. A second explanation was required before turning the device off.