Is Scotland ‘sleepwalking’ towards its place within a UK surveillance state in 2024?
In this short opinion piece, I discuss the process of democratic backsliding to highlight a worrying pattern of decreasing democracy in the UK. In doing so I engage with the recurring theme of disempowerment, including of independent oversight of the police use of biometrics in England and Wales. I also pose the question of whether Scotland may be sleepwalking towards its place within a UK surveillance state during 2024 due to the seeds already sown by the UK Government in both the Data Protection and Digital Information Bill, and the Criminal Justice Bill. In closing, I advocate an alternative direction for Scotland where independent checks and balances over biometrics and biometric enabled surveillance are strengthened rather than weakened to enhance public confidence and trust.
New Year opinion piece
by
Dr Brian Plastow, Scottish Biometrics Commissioner.