Biometric recommendations by the Science and Technologies Committee

The request was successful.

Dear Home Office,

Under the Freedom of Information Act

With reference to the Government's response to the recommendations of the Science and Technologies Committee inquiry of the Current and Future Uses of Biometric Data and Technologies in September 2015 http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa...

Government's response to Recommendation 4 was "CAST are working with the Home Office Test and Design Consultancy Services to document the Home Office biometric accuracy testing approach to ensure consistency and transparency across the Home Office. It is expected that this document will be complete by the end of the year [2015]."

1a) Please advise if the Home Office's / Home Office Test and Design Consultancy Services report on biometric accuracy testing has been published.

2a) If it has been published please provide a copy or a link to the report.

3a) If it has not been published please advise why and when it will be published.

Government's response to Recommendation 5 was "The Home Office sponsors an ethics group to provide scrutiny, challenge and review of ethical issues raised by forensic science, focused on DNA. We are considering whether the same ethical oversight should be applied to the collection, use and retention of fingerprints and custody images."

1b) Please advise if the Home Office has, upon the Science and Technologies Committee's recommendation to "to facilitate an open, public debate around the growth of biometric systems", any plans to set up any ethical oversight and/or public debate on biometrics and how government uses/plans to use the public's biometric data.

2b) If the Home Office has set up such arena for debate/consultancy on biometrics please advise details.

3b) If the Home Office has not set up any ethical oversight or public debate on biometrics please advise why and when such oversight/debate is planned.

Government's response to Recommendation 11 was "As Lord Bates announced earlier this year, the Home Office is currently undertaking a policy review of the statutory basis for the retention of facial images, and consulting key stakeholders. Terms of Reference for the review were agreed following consultation with the Information Commissioner, Biometrics Commissioner and Surveillance Camera Commissioner. As part of that review, we are considering the role of the Biometrics Commissioner, the Government will of course publish the findings of the review and consult formally as appropriate."

1c) Please advise if the Home Office's consideration of the role of the Biometrics Commissioner has been undertaken.

2c) If it has been published please provide a copy or a link to the report.

3c) If it has not been published please advise why and when it will be published.

Some parts of this request may be easier to answer than others and in such case please could you release available data as soon as possible rather than delay the entire request.

If you are not fully certain of what it is I am asking then I look forward to contact from you as soon as possible to clarify what it is I am requesting in order to meet your obligations under the law.

If the costs of processing this request exceed the limit in the Act, please advise on what information you are able to supply within the cost limit.

Yours faithfully,

Pippa King

FOI Requests, Home Office

Dear Pippa King,

Thank you for contacting the Home Office with your request.

This has been assigned to a caseworker (case ref 41290). We will aim to send you a full response by 31/10/2016 which is twenty working days from the date we received your request.

If you have any questions then please do not hesitate to contact us.

Thank you,

N McKenzie
FOI Requests
Home Office

show quoted sections

Dear FOI Requests,
FAO N McKenzie
Case ref 41290

This Freedom of Information request was due 31st October 2016 and is now overdue. Pease could you either reply to this request or conduct an internal review as to why it has not been answered.

Yours sincerely,

Pippa King

FOI Requests, Home Office

1 Attachment

Dear Ms King,

 

Please find attached response to your FOI request.  Please accept my
apologies for the delay with this response.

 

Regards,

 

 

Andy Woodgate

Knowledge and Information Management Unit

Performance and Risk Directorate

 

Home Office

3rd Floor Peel Building, 2 Marsham Street, London, SW1P 4DF

 

T: +44 (0)20 7035 5273

 

www.gov.uk/home-office

 

show quoted sections

Dear FOI Requests,

Dear Andy Woodgate,
Ref: Case ref 41290

Thank you for your response. Please could you clarify as per my original Freedom of Information questions.

With regards to questions 1a, 2a and 3a thank you for your reply however I did not ask ‘how’ you would use any biometric and accuracy testing [report] but I appreciate your response in this. I am asking, as per your statement to the Science and Technologies committee, ‘if’ said document/report has been completed and/or therefore published - which is unclear by your reply.

Accordingly, please advise, as per question 1a, if the completed document/report has been published and therefore, dependant on the affirmative/negative answer to 1a, then please provide copy or link to the completed document/report, as per question 2a.

And therefore, dependant on the affirmative/negative answer to 1a, please advise ‘why and when it [completed document/report] will be published’ as per question 3a. i.e. if there is any intent (or not) to publish the completed document/report and reason, which would be considered in the ‘why’ element of my question.

With reference to question 3c I asked 'If it (Biometrics Strategy/ review of custody images) has not been published please advise why and when it will be published'. Your answer to ‘when’ it was due to be published was “no particular date for publication has been set.” But the reason ‘why’ the Biometrics Strategy/ review of custody images has not been published was not answered in your reply. Please advise the reason ‘why’ it has not been published, (explaining fully why) as per my Freedom of Information request.

As specified in my original FOIR I stated “If you are not fully certain of what it is I am asking then I look forward to contact from you as soon as possible to clarify what it is I am requesting in order to meet your obligations under the law.” I hope this reply clarifies my FOIR requirements.

Thank you for your time on this.

Yours sincerely,

Pippa King

FOI Requests, Home Office

Ms King,

Thank you for contacting the Home Office with your request.

This has been assigned to a caseworker (case ref 42076). We will aim to send you a full response by 09/01/2017 which is twenty working days from the date we received your request.

If you have any questions then please do not hesitate to contact us.

Thank you,

J Douglas
FOI Requests
Home Office

show quoted sections

Dear FOI Requests,
Attn: J Douglas

This is not a separate request. The Home Office has not answered questions from my original request, case ref 41290, dated 2nd October which was due back 31st October. The Home Office partially replied to me on 24th November which was late, therefore please reply to my correspondance sent yesterday highlighting parts of the original request you have not responded to, as the information originally requested, that you have not answered, is very late.

Either please provide the information requested on 2nd October (as communicated to you yesterday) or conduct an internal review of your handling of case ref 41290.

Yours sincerely,

Pippa King

FOI Requests, Home Office

Dear Pippa King,

***Please disregard previous communication relating to FOI 42076 - now cancelled***

Thank you for contacting the Home Office with your request for an Internal Review.

This has been assigned to a caseworker (retaining case ref 41290). We will aim to send you a full response by 10/01/17 which is twenty working days from the date we received your request.

If you have any questions then please do not hesitate to contact us.

Thank you,

A Callaghan
FOI Requests
Home Office

show quoted sections

FOI Responses, Home Office

1 Attachment

Dear Ms King,

 

Please find response to your Internal Review attached. I apologise for the
delay in response to your request.

 

Kind regards

 

Home Office

 

 

show quoted sections