The Metropolitan Police Service (Met) has announced plans to more than double its use of live facial recognition (LFR) technology across London, increasing weekly deployments from four to as many as ten. The initiative will see the technology deployed over five days each week, up from the previous two-day schedule, in an effort to boost public safety amid a £260 million budget shortfall and ongoing reductions in staffing.
Expanded Surveillance in Targeted Hotspots
The increased LFR operations will focus on six designated areas identified as high-crime zones: Brixton, Kingston, Ealing, Finsbury Park, Southwark, and Spitalfields. The decision follows previous results from LFR deployments, which the Met says have contributed to around 1,000 arrests to date, including 773 that resulted in charges or cautions.
The broader rollout is part of a larger restructuring of the force, prompted by financial constraints and rising demands on police services. Alongside the LFR expansion, officers are being reallocated to public order and neighborhood crime teams. The Met’s public order unit will grow from 48 to 63 officers to address the increasing number of protests, including those related to the Israel-Palestine conflict and climate action demonstrations.
The announcement follows a recent proposal by UK police chiefs calling for approximately £220 million annually to fund emerging technologies like facial recognition. The funding request is part of a broader vision under the National Policing Digital Strategy to modernize law enforcement through data and automation. While not yet approved, the proposal signals strong institutional backing for LFR adoption across the country.
Public Criticism and Privacy Safeguards
Civil liberties groups continue to raise concerns about the use of real-time facial recognition in public spaces. Organizations such as Big Brother Watch have criticized LFR as a potential step toward mass surveillance, warning that the technology could undermine privacy rights, free expression, and the presumption of innocence. Skeptics also point to documented issues around racial bias and accuracy in facial recognition algorithms.
The Met maintains that its deployments are intelligence-led and focus exclusively on locating individuals wanted for serious crimes. According to official policy, facial images are not stored unless a match is made, and the system operates under strict oversight, including independent reviews. The force describes LFR as a tool that complements conventional policing rather than replacing it.
The move comes amid broader interest in facial recognition among UK police forces. Bedfordshire Police recently launched a consultation on implementing their own LFR systems, further reflecting growing momentum behind the technology at the national level.
Sources: The Guardian, The Independent, Big Brother Watch
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By Cass Kennedy
