The Surveillance Camera Commissioner has issued a blog to update us all on the recent ruling from the Court of Appeal, Bridges V South Wales Police.  A milestone ruling concerning the use of automatic facial recognition (AFR).

What is perhaps more interesting is the not so veiled criticism of the Home Office and Home Secretary, merging his role with that of the Biometrics Commissioner.  As Tony Porter succinctly puts it “95% of what I do is not related to facial recognition”.

He goes on “I fear this decision will weaken it in the long term – the judgment is clear the framework needs to be bolstered not diluted and I do not agree this will make the oversight regime clearer because they are still two distinct roles with little in common.”

He is also concerned of the lack of the update of the SCC CoP “I have been crying out for the Surveillance Camera Code of Practice to be updated. I first raised it in the review of the Code I carried out in 2015, I have raised in every year since in my Annual Report to the Home Secretary, I have written blogs about it, I’ve spoken to the press about it, I’ve written to Home Office officials and Ministers about it and I’ve even offered to update it myself”.

This is not a good situation when he is charged with giving the advice relating to CCTV governance but no one in the Home Office nor the Home Secretary to whom he reports is listening!