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Police: Biometrics

Question for Home Office

UIN HL492, tabled on 21 November 2023

To ask His Majesty's Government whether police forces can use facial recognition technology to search against photographs from (1) the passport database, (2) the EU Settled Status database, and (3) the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency database, to identify people suspected of offences.

Answered on

5 December 2023

Police forces can currently request facial recognition searches against the passport database on a limited basis in support of the most serious law enforcement investigations.

No facial recognition searches are currently carried out against the EU Settled Status and Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency databases in the course of police investigations to identify people suspected of offences.

Answered by

Home Office