the Home Office is announcing the rollout of 10 new Live Facial Recognition (LFR) vans to seven forces across the country – including Greater Manchester Police – equipping officers with targeted, cutting-edge technology to catch high-harm criminals.
The new vans will operate according to strict rules, which ensure they are only deployed when there is specific intelligence.
The College of Policing has clear guidance on how the technology should be used.
These vehicles enable law enforcement to target and locate wanted criminals and suspects for the most serious crimes including sex offences, violent assaults, homicide and serious and organised crime.
Forces already using LFR have used it to arrest rape, domestic abuse, knife crime and robbery suspects as well as sex offenders breaching their conditions. The technology has also been used to maintain safety at big public events.
Existing safeguards require checks only to be done against police watchlists of wanted criminals, suspects and those subject to bail or court order conditions like sex offenders. Watchlists are bespoke to every deployment, with officers following strict guidance from the College of Policing guidance when composing a list.
Home Secretary Yvette Cooper said:
“Neighbourhood policing has been decimated over the last 15 years, but through our Plan for Change we are turning the corner, starting with town and city centres.
“Within the next year, we will have 3,000 new neighbourhood officers and PCSOs in place, which is a big shift. We also want them to have more powers to tackle off-road bikes, shop theft, street theft and other crimes that have blighted some of our town and city centres, so everyone can feel safe in their own town.
“And we will provide police with the tools they need to do their jobs. Facial recognition will be used in a targeted way to identify sex offenders or people wanted for the most serious crimes who the police have not been able to find.
“That’s why we’re funding 10 vans and also drawing up a new legal framework, so we’ve got proper safeguards and checks in place so that we can use the technology to go after the most dangerous criminals.”
