The police have reportedly installed “watch towers” on London’s Oxford Street to make sure people are adhering to social distancing rules.

Social media users have blasted the move comparing the ‘Orwellian’ police watch towers to something out of a ‘dystopian’ novel.

RT reports: Luke Johnson, a British entrepreneur, shared a picture of the new installations on Friday, raising eyebrows among Brits who questioned whether it was an appropriate way to spend taxpayer money. Many denounced the new street features as a “stupid waste” of resources.  

Many also pointed out that the “two-meter rule” is guidance, not an actual law, making the decision to have police monitor citizens’ behavior especially debatable. 

Others complained that the watchtowers were something more likely to be seen in an authoritarian state like North Korea.

The towers were also branded as “dystopian” and “Orwellian,” with one user dubbing them “Covid-1984” towers.

The decision to install the watchpoints comes as London Mayor Sadiq Khan announced £110mn in police cuts, which left one Twitter user wondering how authorities still had “enough money to turn London into a concentration camp.”