Shabana Mahmood defends rollout of live facial recognition to all police forces

The Home Secretary has defended plans to roll out live facial recognition to all police forces in England and Wales amid concerns that public consultation on its use has not yet been completed.

Shabana Mahmood told LBC there is no such thing as “true freedom” if people are too afraid of crime to leave their homes, while human rights group Liberty accused the Government of ignoring people’s fundamental rights, announcing a practice for which consultation is still ongoing.

The Home Secretary said evidence from live facial recognition will be tested in criminal cases, although it is not “always 100% foolproof”.

Plans, revealed on Monday as part of sweeping reforms to the force, see the number of camera vans increase from 10 to 50 and be made available to all forces in England and Wales.

A public consultation is ongoing on how the use of the technology should be regulated, but it is understood the national rollout of the vans will be in line with existing standards used by the Metropolitan Police, which has been using the technology for several years.

Currently, the legal basis for the use of facial recognition is fragmentary and based on common law, data protection and human rights laws.

Ms Mahmood said: “I truly believe new technology can help us hunt down criminals and bring more people to justice.

“Of course, it must be used in accordance with our values ​​and in a way that does not involve innocent people in cases they should not be involved in.

“But it’s this technology that works. It’s already led to 1,700 arrests in the Met alone. I think it has huge potential.”

He said the evidence would be tested in the same way as DNA or fingerprint evidence during criminal trials.

“As you bring a technology to market, you learn more about how it works. I think that’s actually very true.

“In any criminal case, like fingerprints or DNA, it is part of a package of evidence.

“And of course we know that none of this is perfect 100% of the time.

“Therefore, the evidence is tested in court, and the defense always has the opportunity to test that evidence and present an alternative view.”

There are currently plans to restrict the number of jury trials.

Ms Mahmood added: “Technology really presents a huge opportunity for us and there is no civil liberties, there is no real freedom if you are not safe in your own country.

“If you can’t leave your front door because you’re afraid of crime on your high street and in the immediate area.”

On Monday, Conservative MP Sir David Davis said the technology could lead to miscarriages of justice, pointing to lower accuracy rates of facial recognition for some ethnic minorities and the Post Office scandal as an example where courts “believe computers rather than people”.

Ruth Ehrlich, Liberty’s director of external affairs, said the Government had “undermined its own consultation” on national distribution.

“The introduction of powerful surveillance tools while consultations are ongoing undermines public trust and demonstrates that our fundamental rights are being ignored,” he said.

“Artificial intelligence and facial recognition are powerful technologies that allow police to track and monitor people as they go about their daily lives. Attempts by police forces to use these tools have so far been unsuccessful.

“We have seen what happens when facial recognition technology is introduced without clear protections: children are wrongly placed on watch lists, and people of color are at risk of being wrongly identified.

“These have caused real harm to people’s lives and are the result of complex, powerful technology being handed over to police who do not have the expertise to manage it safely.

“The government must stop the rapid spread of facial recognition technology, ensure safeguards are in place to protect each of us, and prioritize our rights.

“They should also learn from the past and ensure there is a strong guardrail in place that puts the rights and privacy of British people at its heart, with real transparency and meaningful oversight, before giving the police more AI tools.”

In November, police forces in Greater Manchester, West Yorkshire, Bedfordshire, Surrey, Sussex, Thames Valley and Hampshire were all given access to live facial recognition under an expanded pilot programme, joining the Met, South Wales Police and Essex Police in its use.

A 10-week public consultation process on the use of the technology was launched in December and is expected to be completed by 12 February.