Home Office backs AI-assisted disclosure reforms to reduce police bureaucracy
The Home Office has accepted the majority of recommendations from an independent review of criminal disclosure, paving the way for police forces to use artificial intelligence to help manage growing volumes of digital evidence.
The government has accepted 35 of the 45 recommendations made by Jonathan Fisher KC’s Independent Review of Disclosure and Fraud Offences, including proposals to legislate for the use of AI during the disclosure process.
The reforms are intended to modernise guidance introduced in 1996, before smartphones and social media transformed the volume of digital material generated during criminal investigations.
Disclosure failures have contributed to a number of high-profile miscarriages of justice in recent years, while the rapid growth in digital evidence has significantly increased the workload placed on investigators.
Under the proposals, AI will be used to help identify, organise and summarise large quantities of digital evidence, reducing the amount of manual work required. PoliceAI, the National Centre for Police AI, will pilot tools capable of automatically generating summaries of digital material before a planned wider rollout from 2027.
According to the Home Office, the Policing Productivity Review estimated officers spent more than 532,000 hours in 2022/23 preparing disclosure material and case files for investigations that were later discontinued by the Crown Prosecution Service.
The government has also accepted recommendations to establish a national governance forum for disclosure technology and continue work towards centralised procurement of police technology through its wider police reform programme.
Crime and Policing Minister Sarah Jones said the reforms would help reduce bureaucracy and allow officers to spend more time supporting victims and investigating crime.
Al Murray, Interim Director of PoliceAI said: “Used responsibly, AI can help officers and investigators manage vast amounts of material more efficiently, allowing them to spend more time supporting victims, pursuing offenders and exercising the professional judgement that technology can never replace.
“PoliceAI’s role is to help policing adopt these capabilities in a way that is evidence-based, ethical and trusted, ensuring forces have access to tools that have been rigorously tested and supported by robust national standards and oversight. This is not about replacing people with technology. It is about giving officers better tools to meet the demands of modern policing and deliver a more effective service to the public.”
NPCC disclosure lead Chief Constable Tim De Meyer welcomed the review, saying the responsible use of technology had the potential to make the disclosure process “more efficient and effective” while maintaining fair investigations.