Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether her Department has sought legal advice on the compatibility of the use of (a) predictive policing and (b) risk prediction systems by police forces with (i) national and (ii) international human rights obligations.

AI, and other technologies, can provide a wide range of benefits to improve efficiency and productivity in policing, as well as boosting public confidence by improving the prevention, detection and investigation of crime. However, the procurement and deployment of AI technology to assist with forecasting potential areas of crime or disorder, commonly known as ‘predictive policing’, must always be subject to strong safeguards.

The AI Covenant for Policing was agreed at National Police Chiefs Council in September 2023. This provides practical high-level principles that, if followed, will ensure that the police develop and use AI tools that are lawful, transparent, explainable, responsible, accountable and robust. The Home Office has provided funding to support the National Police Chiefs Council AI Portfolio to drive consistency and create guidance for forces to develop and deploy AI tools, and we are undertaking further detailed work in this area. There are a number of essential wider protections in place, including the Public Sector Equality Duty, to ensure that all Government policies take account of the human rights impacts on individuals.