A FRUSTRATED couple say they cannot make love in their own bedroom for fear of being spied on by a rogue council-owned CCTV camera.

John Powell says he has to take his 25-year-old fiancee Emma Sales to another room in the flat to get jiggy because a Peeping Tom camera keeps prying through his bedroom window.

And the 35-year-old mechanic of Parkview Road, Welling, has criticised Bexley Council after it vowed to rectify the problem two years ago.

Following a report in News Shopper in June 2004 highlighting Mr Powell's complaint, the council apologised and said it would introduce "further safeguards" to prevent the camera's unwelcome gaze.

Mr Powell says the situation improved for a while but now the problem has returned, with the camera glaring at his bedroom window for up to 15 minutes at a time.

He said: "I've probably flashed my backside to CCTV control rooms across the entire borough.

"I never get changed in my bedroom and when my fiancee comes round we have to go to the back bedroom.

"I wouldn't feel comfortable doing it in my bedroom. I've never had plans to go into the porn industry and I'm concerned I might be caught on candid camera."

Mr Powell, who manages the One Stop Tyre and Exhaust garage below his flat, says he is unable to fully shut the blinds in his bedroom after his three cats pulled one of them down around six months ago.

He added: "I've been meaning to fix the blinds but the point is the camera should not be gawping at my flat.

"I feel like I'm in Big Brother. I've had problems with vandalism and the cameras didn't even catch anything."

A council spokesman said: "We are most concerned residents feel CCTV might infringe their privacy. We shall be working with this gentleman to see if we can adjust the camera to resolve the problem.

"Most people do accept CCTV brings big advantages to safety and security, but we accept sometimes there needs to be a compromise."