UK PM Looks to Expand Police Facial Recognition Amid Knife Attack Riots

United Kingdom Prime Minister Keir Starmer has signalled that facial recognition technology could have an even more prominent role in policing amid unrest stemming from a multiple-homicide knife attack at the end of July.

A single attacker had killed three children and wounded two adults at a Taylor Swift-themed dance class. Outrage at the attack led to rioting in multiple communities, with some number of rioters appearing to believe that it was an act of terrorism carried out by a radical Islamist.

As a result of the unrest, police have gone to extraordinary efforts to reveal information about the attacker that would normally be kept private. A Liverpool City Magistrate Court judge determined that the name of the attacker could be revealed, given that he would lose certain child privacy protections when he turns 18 on August 7; and Merseyside Police have stated that the attacker was born in Cardiff to Rwandan parents, and that he has no known links to Islam.

Prime Minister Starmer convened police chiefs at Downing Street toward the end of the week, and put together a “National Violent Disorder Programme” that will enhance police powers to deal with riots and related unrest.

According to a statement from the Prime Minister’s Office, the Programme will “consider how we can deploy facial recognition technology, which is already used by some forces, more widely across the country,” adding, “This will mean criminals can be targeted, found and brought to justice quickly.”

Chief Constable Gavin Stephens, the head of the National Police Chiefs’ Council, welcomed the effort. “We look forward to working with government and receiving more details on the creation of a National Violent Disorder Programme and further work on tools such as Live Facial Recognition,” he said.

The trajectory mirrors a similar train of events that occurred several months ago in Ireland, also triggered by a knife attack against children. The attack in that case was carried out by an Arabic-speaking homeless man, though so far there is no indication he was motivated by religious fanaticism. Outrage over the attacks spilled into rioting in Dublin, which in turn prompted police to pursue expanded powers in order to quell such violence and to pursue assailants caught on surveillance footage.

Ultimately, legislation was proposed that would allow the Irish national police to use facial recognition technology for retrospective searches of CCTV footage.

In the UK, Prime Minister Starmer has sought to frame his efforts to expand police powers as a response to “far-right hatred” and a means of preventing “a breakdown in law and order on our streets.”

Sources: BBC News, Gov.uk

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August 2, 2024 – by Alex Perala