Policing must be ‘quicker and braver’ on use of technology, says college CEO

Her was responding to The Times Crime and Justice Commission report into the state of the criminal justice system, which warned “every part of the system is in crisis”.

The commission was set up in April last year to consider the future of policing, the courts, sentencing and prisons and draw up proposals for reform.

In his foreword to the report, Tony Gallagher, editor of The Times, said the problems in the criminal justice system were “clear for all to see”.

“The police are struggling to retain public trust, the prisons are overflowing and the courts backlog is causing insufferable delays,” he said. “Every part of the system is in crisis and a sense of lawlessness has taken hold in too many neighbourhoods and high streets.

“The commission’s job was to find solutions.”

Mr Gallagher said three core principles underpin the report, backed up by detailed research, case studies and recommendations.

“First, the criminal justice system must be seen as an interconnected whole rather than being broken into its constituent parts,” he wrote in his foreword. “Decisions taken about sentencing will have an immediate impact on prisons and changes to policing will have an inevitable knock-on effect in the courts.

“Second, it is time to end the sloganising about law and order and follow the evidence about what works. The only way to be truly ‘tough on crime’ is to reduce offending and reoffending.

“Third, technology has the power to transform the criminal justice system. New threats are emerging online but there are also enormous opportunities on offer from artificial intelligence (AI), data analytics and live facial recognition tools that must be seized with both hands.

“Criminals are the fastest adopters of new technology in the world and the authorities must keep up. We want the commission to be a catalyst for change. The status quo is not an option. The current approach to law and order is eroding public trust and is simply unaffordable.”

Sir Andy took part in a panel discussion on the future of policing and crime prevention at the launch of the report.

Other panellists included Lindsey Chiswick, director of performance and national lead for facial recognition at the Metropolitan Police Service; Alex Lowe of Axon; and Richard Susskind, former IT adviser to the lord chief justice of England and Wales.

They discussed how AI can improve the criminal justice system, the rise of live facial recognition and data analytics for frontline officers.

The commission had recommended:

• An updated model of neighbourhood policing, informed by data and enabled by technology so resources can be most effectively deployed;
• Live facial recognition technology should be rolled out and a clear legal framework put in place;
• The bright spots of innovations including AI and digital processing tools, digital interview rooms, drones and rapid video response must be replicated across the country;
• A new licence to practice should be created for the police, administered by the College with revalidation every five years, subject to an officer reaching the required standards, competency levels and qualifications to perform their duties; and
• A new National Centre for Policing, working alongside the College, should be created to provide a central resource ensuring the forces have interoperable systems.

Addressing the audience, Sir Andy welcomed the commission’s recommendations and called for police leaders to be “quicker and braver” about the rapid development of technology.

“There are a number of barriers to getting the best out of technology and placing it in the hands of our officers and staff. One of those barriers is the fragmented nature of policing and the 43-force model,” he said.

“At Hampshire, I became the first chief in England and Wales to roll out personal issue body-worn video. I very quickly realised unless there was a transformation of skills and a very open mindset about how this tech could be used to the benefit of the public, you are simply going to drop a very expensive trinket on officers to wear.

“The big lesson is unless your leaders give your workforce the insight, the skills, and the aptitude to use technology, you are just going to spend a lot of money.”

Sir Andy gave evidence to the commission last year alongside the chair of the college, Lord Herbert of South Downs, and interim director of the Centre for Police Innovation and Productivity Rachel Tuffin.

Highlighting the levels of innovation which already exist within policing, Sir Andy said: “We don’t lack entrepreneurial police officers and staff who are prepared to try different stuff. The college’s Centre for Police Productivity identifies what innovations are going to change the game for policing.

“But how are we going to supercharge them and inject these into policing at pace? We have almost 1,000 innovations, and the system is too fragmented with too many procurement strands.

“This is why I particularly welcome the commission’s recommendation about creating the national centre which will work alongside the College of Policing to identify the things that are game-changing.

“In policing we have been so observed and so criticised, we have almost become frightened of our own shadow. What we lack is the ability to identify things that work, procure them once, and get them out to all our forces in a much quicker time.”

The editor of The Times said the report contains “clear, deliverable, evidence-based policies that would make the criminal justice system both more effective and more efficient”.

Mr Gallagher added: “I urge the Government to support its recommendations and to bring about the reform that the country needs.”