Microchips could be put under prisoners' skin to track them, tech bosses tell prison minister

Microchips could be inserted under the skin of offenders to track their movements, tech bosses have suggested.

The proposal was put forward by tech bosses as a way of monitoring prisoners in real time and around the clock.

The idea was suggested as part of a 'roundtable' event with the Prisons Minister Lord Timpson and representatives from tech firms.

Other ideas put forward included driverless prison vans and robot-run jails.

The meeting took place last year with representatives from more than 30 companies including Amazon, Google and Microsoft, but details have only started to emerge now.

Firms also suggested that AI could be used to predict the risk posed by certain individuals.

Lord Timpson told the meeting that 'Once-in-a-generation reform is the only way we can truly deal with the scale of the crisis, cut crime and speed up justice.'

He added: 'I want technology to play an integral role in tackling these problems and making our streets safer.' And he told the tech bosses that the meeting was 'just the start of a new conversation between us and you.'

The minutes of the secretive meeting were released to Foxglove, a group that campaigns against the abuse of tech by governments and companies, following a Freedom of Information request.

The group told prison newspaper Inside Time that the ideas sounded 'alarmingly dystopian'.

They added: 'It's worrying that justice ministers have sat with the tech sector to discuss using robots to manage prisoners, implanting devices under people's skin to track their behaviour, or using computers to 'predict' what they will do in future.'

The Ministry of Justice kept most of the details of the meeting secret at the time, but said the discussion would focus on the 'potential for even more effective tracking of offender movement, using data to aid probation officers to perform better risk assessments and whether digital platforms can help offenders rehabilitate and integrate back into society, cutting reoffending'.

Then-Lord Chancellor, Shabana Mahmood said at the time: 'We need bold ideas to address the challenges that we face -- supporting our staff, delivering swifter justice for victims, and cutting crime.

'Today, we have an analogue justice system in a digital age.

'The UK has a world-leading and growing tech sector, and I know our tech firms have a huge role to play in delivering our Plan for Change to make streets safer.'

The MOJ said it was looking to follow up the meeting with an event open to the whole of the industry, inviting them to return and present their ideas to the department.

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