Asked by: Martin Wrigley (Liberal Democrat - Newton Abbot)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the oral evidence to the Science, Innovation and Technology Committee on 3 June 2025, HC 523, whether her Department plans to pilot enhanced device‑blocking and cross‑platform verification tools with the Metropolitan Police and other police forces.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)
Mobile phone theft causes significant distress to victims and fuels wider criminality, and the Government is determined to reduce it. We recognise the important role that technical solutions, such as options aimed at preventing stolen devices from accessing cloud services, can play in reducing the market value of a stolen device.
The Metropolitan Police Service is currently leading collaboration with technology partners, including mobile operating system providers, to explore the quickest and most effective ways of achieving this. The Home Office is supporting this important collaboration between law enforcement and technology partners.
Asked by: Martin Wrigley (Liberal Democrat - Newton Abbot)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the oral evidence to the Science, Innovation and Technology Committee on 3 June 2025, HC 523, what steps her Department has taken with mobile operating system providers to prevent stolen devices from accessing cloud services internationally.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)
Mobile phone theft causes significant distress to victims and fuels wider criminality, and the Government is determined to reduce it. We recognise the important role that technical solutions, such as options aimed at preventing stolen devices from accessing cloud services, can play in reducing the market value of a stolen device.
The Metropolitan Police Service is currently leading collaboration with technology partners, including mobile operating system providers, to explore the quickest and most effective ways of achieving this. The Home Office is supporting this important collaboration between law enforcement and technology partners.
Asked by: Martin Wrigley (Liberal Democrat - Newton Abbot)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what role her Department has in providing oversight and assurance where public confidence in policing has been undermined by media reporting and documentary evidence; and whether there are existing independent bodies and review mechanisms to which such concerns should appropriately be directed.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)
This Department supports the police and is clear that public confidence is crucial to our model of policing by consent. We hold our police to the highest of standards and expect action to be taken where this confidence is undermined. There are a number of measures in place to help ensure this.
The Home Secretary has powers to direct targeted inspections by His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire and Rescue Services (HMICFRS) where there are specific concerns. The Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) oversees the police complaints system under which the public can raise concerns directly with the Professional Standards Department in their local police force or via the IOPC. The most serious and sensitive matters, including deaths or serious injuries involving the police, must be sent immediately by forces to the IOPC and the IOPC determines if it is necessary for such matters to be independently investigated. The IOPC, which has a statutory duty to maintain public confidence in the system, also has powers to “call in” a referral or to investigate such matters that have come to its attention on its own initiative, without waiting for a referral.
We set out plans for policing reform in the recent White Paper, From Local to National: A New Model for Policing” on 26 January, including reforms to increase accountability and standards.
Finally, the independent Angiolini Inquiry is currently examining a range of issues in policing such as vetting, recruitment and culture in policing and the Home Office will carefully consider its findings when available.
Asked by: Martin Wrigley (Liberal Democrat - Newton Abbot)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what protections exist for police (a) officers and (b) staff who (i) raise and (ii) disclose (A) historical and (B) modern (1) concerns and (2) wrongdoing.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)
Serving police officers and police staff in England and Wales are given protections in law against detriment (adverse treatment), if they “blow the whistle” about wrongdoing by their forces or colleagues, providing certain conditions are met. This includes making disclosures about (A) historic or (B) recent or concurrent issues.
The protections in law include protections from reprisal or unfair dismissal. Separately, police officers are required by law to report any wrongdoing by colleagues that they witness or find out about.
There are internal whistleblowing routes available for police officers and staff in police forces and the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) also has its own dedicated reporting line specifically for police officers and staff to report concerns. The Director General of the IOPC is a “prescribed body” for whistleblowing disclosures as listed in the Public Interest Disclosure (Prescribed Persons) Order 2014.
In addition, the Government is exploring options to amend legislation to allow police officers to use the public complaints system where there are allegations of police-perpetrated domestic abuse.
Asked by: Martin Wrigley (Liberal Democrat - Newton Abbot)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what standards her Department sets for the ethical and technical assurance of AI systems used in law enforcement.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)
Although ethical decisions around AI are the responsibility of individual Chief Constables and heads of law enforcement agencies, the Home Office is taking steps to ensure these decisions are evidence-based and transparent.
The Covenant for Using Artificial Intelligence in Policing provides a high-level framework for AI adoption by police forces. It sets out clear principles for the development and deployment of AI in policing, including lawfulness, fairness, transparency, explainability, accountability and robustness. These principles operate alongside existing statutory obligations, including the Equality Act 2010 and data protection legislation, and are supported by published guidance from the College of Policing and local governance and ethics arrangements within forces. We expect all law enforcement agencies to work within the current laws.
In January 2026 the Police Reform White Paper set out plans to establish a new national centre for AI in policing which will be tasked with accelerating the rapid and responsible adoption of AI across forces. It will centralise the development, testing and evaluation of AI tools, support consistent application of assurance standards before deployment, and promote transparency through a public-facing registry of police AI use. It will move into the National Police Service.
In addition, the Home Office launched a public consultation last year on a new legal framework for law enforcement use of biometrics, facial recognition and similar technologies. The consultation sought views on when and how these technologies should be used and what safeguards and oversight are needed. The consultation has now closed, and the responses received will inform the scope and content of future legal changes.
Asked by: Martin Wrigley (Liberal Democrat - Newton Abbot)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what process her Department uses for (a) approving and (b) being consulted on pilot deployments of AI-enabled policing tools that integrate sensitive personal data; and what criteria are used to assess such proposals.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)
Through Home Office funding to the NPCC AI portfolio we have produced and published detailed guidance on responsible use of AI, via the NPCC AI Playbook and Covenant. Building AI-enabled tools and systems | College of Policing. The NPCC AI lead, Alex Murray, has also worked with the College of Policing to produce Authorised Professional Practice in this area and a ‘Responsible AI’ checklist.
It is the responsibility of Chief Constables to decide what tools they deploy within their force. All Chief Constables have signed up to the Covenant, which establishes core principles for the transparent, responsible and accountable use of AI and generative technologies in UK policing. Forces should pay due regard to these principles when implementing AI tools in force.
Further to this, as a part of the Police Reform White Paper, the UK Government is announced the establishment of Police.AI, a new national centre for AI in policing focused on helping forces adopt AI tools responsibly and the set up of a new National Data Integration and Exploitation Service (NDIES).
Police.AI will ensure that operationally independent Chief Constables have the evidence and resources they need to ensure the AI they are using has proven benefits, is backed by robust evidence and is maximising accuracy whilst minimising bias. We are also creating a public-facing registry of AI deployments in policing, setting out what each tool does, why it is used, the risks identified, and how these risks are being mitigated, encouraging careful reflection on the merits and risks of each tool.
Asked by: Martin Wrigley (Liberal Democrat - Newton Abbot)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what role her Department has in (a) overseeing and (b) advising on pilot deployments of novel AI systems that process sensitive personal data in policing.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)
Through Home Office funding to the NPCC AI portfolio we have produced and published detailed guidance on responsible use of AI, via the NPCC AI Playbook and Covenant. Building AI-enabled tools and systems | College of Policing. The NPCC AI lead, Alex Murray, has also worked with the College of Policing to produce Authorised Professional Practice in this area and a ‘Responsible AI’ checklist.
It is the responsibility of Chief Constables to decide what tools they deploy within their force. All Chief Constables have signed up to the Covenant, which establishes core principles for the transparent, responsible and accountable use of AI and generative technologies in UK policing. Forces should pay due regard to these principles when implementing AI tools in force.
Further to this, as a part of the Police Reform White Paper, the UK Government is announced the establishment of Police.AI, a new national centre for AI in policing focused on helping forces adopt AI tools responsibly and the set up of a new National Data Integration and Exploitation Service (NDIES).
Police.AI will ensure that operationally independent Chief Constables have the evidence and resources they need to ensure the AI they are using has proven benefits, is backed by robust evidence and is maximising accuracy whilst minimising bias. We are also creating a public-facing registry of AI deployments in policing, setting out what each tool does, why it is used, the risks identified, and how these risks are being mitigated, encouraging careful reflection on the merits and risks of each tool.
Asked by: Martin Wrigley (Liberal Democrat - Newton Abbot)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of the proposed changes to the Skilled Worker route for Indefinite Leave to Remain on people already legally resident in the UK; and whether she plans to introduce transitional protections for people in the UK under the existing five‑year settlement pathway.
Answered by Mike Tapp - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
The earned settlement model, proposed in ‘A Fairer Pathway to Settlement’, is currently subject to a public consultation, running until 12 February 2026.
The Immigration White Paper included a commitment to consult on these changes. The changes involve significant reforms to the settlement pathway, and it is right that we consult to assess their impact on affected groups.
The consultation includes questions intended to seek respondents’ views on the impacts of the proposed model and also seeks views on whether there should be transitional arrangements for those already on a pathway to settlement.
Details of the final earned settlement scheme will be finalised once the consultation has closed and the responses analysed.
The final model will be subject to economic and equality impact assessments, which we have committed to publish in due course.
Asked by: Martin Wrigley (Liberal Democrat - Newton Abbot)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the mean, medium and mode waiting times are for processing Homes for Ukraine visas; and how many of those visas take more than three weeks to issue.
Answered by Mike Tapp - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
UKVI are currently assessing Homes for Ukraine visas within the published processing times. Information on visa processing times can be found at Visa processing times - GOV.UK
Average processing times do not form part of any current transparency data for Home for Ukraine applications and are not published.
A range of processing data including case outcomes on Ukraine visa applications, can be found at: Immigration system statistics data tables - GOV.UK and Migration transparency data - GOV.UK
Asked by: Martin Wrigley (Liberal Democrat - Newton Abbot)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will submit details of new AI-enabled IT systems to be procured for the proposed National Police Service for select committee scrutiny.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)
We will be establishing a programme of work with policing to deliver the National Police Service. The immediate priorities are to develop the legislation to bring about the new police force; and to deliver the integration of existing capabilities and systems in phase 1, such as National IT, Commercial, Forensics and National Police Air Service. These will form the initial functions of the National Police Service. Parliament and its select committees will be able to scrutinise the development of the National Police Service and its systems in the usual way
We recently announced over £115 million over the next three years to support the rapid and responsible development, testing and rollout of AI tools across all 43 police forces in England and Wales. This will be spearheaded by the creation of Police.AI, a new National Centre for AI in Policing. Police.AI will support forces to adopt AI tools and software by testing and assuring AI models, helping with scaling implementation, and providing public facing transparency through a registry of AI tools in use by policing.
The Home Office are now working closely with the NPCC AI portfolio to establish Police.AI. This includes recruiting its staff and securing a host organisation. Police.AI will transition into the National Police Service when it is appropriate to do so.