Met Police's facial recognition policy ‘unlawful', says human rights watchdog
The Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) said the UK's biggest police force's rules and safeguards over using the tool 'fall short' and could have a 'chilling effect' on individuals' rights when used at protests.
The Met is set to use LFR, which captures people's faces in real-time CCTV cameras, at the Notting Hill Carnival over the August bank holiday.
Sir Mark Rowley, the Metropolitan Police Commissioner, has already sought to reassure campaign groups that the technology will be used without bias.
A Met spokesman said the force believed its use of the tool was 'both lawful and proportionate, playing a key role in keeping Londoners safe '.
The EHRC has been given permission to intervene in a forthcoming judicial review over LFR, brought by Silkie Carlo, the Big Brother Watch director, and Shaun Thompson, an anti-knife crime community worker.
They claim Mr Thompson was 'grossly mistreated' after LFR wrongly identified him as a criminal in 2024.
John Kirkpatrick, the EHRC chief executive, said the technology could help combat serious crime and keep people safe but the biometric data being processed was 'deeply personal'.
'The law is clear: everyone has the right to privacy, to freedom of expression and to freedom of assembly. These rights are vital for any democratic society,' he said.
'As such, there must be clear rules which guarantee that live facial recognition technology is used only where necessary, proportionate and constrained by appropriate safeguards.
'We believe that the Metropolitan Police's current policy falls short of this standard. The Met, and other forces using this technology, need to ensure they deploy it in ways which are consistent with the law and with human rights.'
The watchdog said it believed the Met's policy was incompatible with articles eight, on right to privacy, 10, on freedom of expression and 11, on freedom of assembly and association of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR).
'Most pressing human rights concern'
Rebecca Vincent, the Big Brother Watch interim director, welcomed the involvement of the EHRC in the judicial review.
'The rapid proliferation of invasive live facial recognition technology without any legislation governing its use is one of the most pressing human rights concerns in the UK today,' she said.
'Live facial recognition surveillance turns our faces into barcodes and makes us a nation of suspects who, as we've seen in Shaun's case, can be falsely accused, grossly mistreated and forced to prove our innocence to authorities.
'Given this crucial ongoing legal action, the Home Office and police's investment in this dangerous and discriminatory technology is wholly inappropriate and must stop.'
Yvette Cooper, the Home Secretary, defended plans to expand LFR across the country to catch 'high-harm' offenders last week.
In July, the Metropolitan Police announced plans to expand its use of the technology across the capital. Police bosses said LFR would now be used up to 10 times per week across five days, up from the current four times per week across two days.
A Met spokeswoman said the force welcomed the EHRC's recognition of the technology's potential in policing, and that the Court of Appeal has confirmed police can use LFR under common law powers.
'As part of this model, we have strong safeguards in place, with biometric data automatically deleted unless there is a match,' she said.
'Independent research from the National Physical Laboratory has also helped us configure the technology in a way that avoids discrimination.'
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