The UK finally has a Biometrics and Surveillance Camera Commissioner again

The UK has a permanent Biometrics and Surveillance Camera Commissioner (BSCC) for the first time in over a year, with University of Stirling Professor William Webster named to the position.

Webster is Professor of Public Policy and Management at the University of Stirling Business School, and has worked with the BSCC’s office previously in his capacity as founder and director of the Centre for Research into Information Surveillance and Privacy (CRISP). In that position, Webster co-authored a report warning of oversight gaps that would have resulted from the elimination of the role with the passage of the Data Protection and Digital Information (DPDI) Bill.

The DPDI Bill was slated to transfer some regulatory responsibilities from the BSCC to the Information Commissioner’s Office, and consigned others to limbo. It was abandoned in the runup to the 2024 election.

By then, the last permanent appointee, Fraser Sampson, had already stepped down. He was replaced by Interim Commissioner Tony Eastaugh, who stepped down in August of 2024. Eastaugh was replaced in the Biometrics Commissioner role by Francesca Whitelaw KC on July 1 of this year, while the Surveillance Camera Commissioner role was left vacant amid a frenzied expansion of surveillance camera use and capabilities.

Webster’s areas of research and expertise include governance structures, public policy and technologies such as surveillance cameras, drones, body-worn cameras and DNA, according to an announcement from the University.

Stirling Business School Dean Professor Kevin Grant lauded Webster’s “unrivalled and world-renowned expertise in biometrics, surveillance, privacy and national security.”

“Developments in new technology, around for example biometrics and artificial intelligence, mean that this office will play an increasingly important role in safeguarding the rights of citizens whilst contributing to keeping the UK safe and secure,” says Webster in the announcement.

“My focus will be to oversee police applications to retain biometric material and the evolution of, and adherence to, the Home Secretary’s Surveillance Camera Code of Practice.”

Webster officially moved into the BSCC role on November 1.

Article Topics

biometrics  |  Biometrics and Surveillance Camera Commissioner  |  law enforcement  |  regulation  |  UK