Thames Valley Police has postponed the initial deployment of its live facial recognition technology in Witney Market Square, Oxfordshire, due to resource pressures. The technology was scheduled to be used on Friday, July 10, but the force stated it will inform the public of future deployment dates. The system, which matches digital images of human faces against a database of known faces to generate potential matches, has drawn criticism from Witney town councillor and former mayor Andy Bailey, who described it as flawed and discriminatory. Defending its use, a police spokesperson stated that the force has rigorous legal mandates, equality impact assessments, and data protection impact assessments in place that are available to the public.

Background: Facial Recognition in Policing

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