Met Police say Robocops are new ‘entrance line’ of policing amid shake-up of forces
Technology is fast becoming the “new front line” of policing, with Metropolitan Police commissioner Sir Mark Rowley suggesting that even robotic officers could soon be on the beat
RoboCops could soon be the policing of the future, according to the Met Police’s commissioner(Image: Getty Images)
Technology is the new “front line” of policing — including potential robotic police officers, according to the Metropolitan Police commissioner. Sir Mark Rowley said local policing needed to have access to the “best modern technology” as he heralded a new age reminiscent of sci-fi film Robocop.
He warned chiefs and politicians “have drifted into the false belief that the only indicator of a well organised police service is the number of officers it employs”. He added: “On that altar, we have sacrificed training, police stations, specialist staff and the ability to keep pace with technology.”
“Modern technology enables precision policing, allowing us to focus on the small number of individuals who cause the greatest harm.” He added: “Technology is the new front line.
“Criminals innovate quickly and policing must keep pace. Most importantly, modern technology enables precision policing, allowing us to focus on the small number of individuals who cause the greatest harm.”
His comments come days after major policing reforms described as the largest changes to the service in its history were unveiled by Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood. The proposals include the national rollout of live facial recognition vans and the creation of a “British FBI” to tackle serious and complex crimes.
“There will always be a tension between chiefs and elected leaders over funding,” Sir Mark acknowledged. “We cannot continue to navigate that tension solely through officer numbers.”
Ms Mahmood set out how the policing structures are “outdated” and called policing the “last great unreformed public service”. She added that the reform was needed so that police could get back to tackling quality-of-life crimes such as shoplifting, phone theft and anti-social behaviour.
The move to reshape the country’s various police forces is now the largest reorganisation of police since 1974, when more metropolitan forces such as Merseyside Police and Greater Manchester Police were formed. However, there has been some backlash to the proposals, saying creating larger areas to police will only reduce the effectiveness of the plans.
In a joint statement police and crime commissioners Matthew Scott and Clare Moody said: ”Experience shows that the creation of regional forces would be expensive, time consuming and complex to deliver; the public want neighbourhood policing. There is no evidence to suggest the public would welcome bigger forces and in terms of public accountability, it also risks creating a separation between police forces and the local communities they serve.”
The statement continued: “It makes responding to local policing and crime needs more difficult and removes the link between local taxpayers and the police they increasingly directly fund through the policing precept. Financial savings from creating larger force areas could be outweighed by the very significant set-up costs.
“We also contest the principle behind it — that bigger forces are necessarily better which is not borne out by experience and force performance comparisons. Police reform has to be about more than just reorganising structures and delivering operational policing — it also has to provide robust governance nationally and locally to be able to scrutinise and address police leadership, ethics and culture.”
Ms Mahmood has already enacted changes to the policing system, even before the new “FBI” proposals were made on Monday (January 26). Last year, the Home Secretary scrapped the position of police and crime commissioners — instead placing responsibility onto elected mayors and local authorities.
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