Police Scotland

The Scottish Police Authority launched a National Conversation in 2024 on the potential use of live facial recognition by Police Scotland. The ICO has been engaging with Police Scotland and the SPA throughout and will continue to input as proposals develop, and separately responded in June 2026 to a Scottish Government consultation reviewing the Scottish Biometrics Commissioner's functions. The ICO's own August 2026 audit statement covers England and Wales 'where LFR is currently in use', which is a citable statement that LFR is not currently operational in Scotland. Scotland is unusual among tracker entries in having a named biometrics-specific oversight body already in statute.

Update, November 2026. A Scottish Police Authority blog by the chair of its Policing Performance Committee, published 9 February 2026, states that no decision has been made on whether to implement live facial recognition, that Police Scotland will keep exploring its potential and consult the public and stakeholders, and that the chair's best estimate is 18 to 24 months for a business case to reach the Authority and a decision to be made. Before any decision Police Scotland would need an LFR-specific code of practice, compliance with the Biometrics Commissioner's code, full impact assessments and a business case. The blog mentions no approved budget, procurement or pilot. However, the Scottish Biometrics Commissioner reports that at the Scottish Police Authority Board on 21 August 2025 Police Scotland's chief officers confirmed their decision to "move ahead with the future use of LFR by Police Scotland", subject to further work on governance, proportionality and scrutiny, and the Authority's record for its Policing Performance Committee of 16 September 2025 sets out Police Scotland's stated intention to "move ahead with Live Facial Recognition" while it engages the public and considers business cases. A named body's stated plan, with public engagement, meets the tracker's definition of proposed, so the status stands.