The Metropolitan Police is preparing to fit live facial recognition cameras across London's West End and Soho by the end of 2026. Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley has described the move as the most significant expansion of the technology since it first arrived in the capital.
The rollout is going ahead even though Britain's biometrics commissioners warned in May that dedicated legislation to govern facial recognition could still be three years away. Peers pressed the Home Secretary on the delay as recently as July, with no firm timetable given in response.
