Police to store number plate camera data for two years

Police will be able to store and search data captured by the proposed national automatic number plate recognition (ANPR) camera network for at least two years, the government has revealed.

The government announced plans last year to develop a national network of thousands of cameras that will automatically scan car number plates and check them against police databases.

Police forces will keep that data in a "live, searchable system" for two years, according to the Association of Chief Police Officers (Acpo).

The Acpo guidance states: "This period of retention is to facilitate the searching of that data on a case-by-case basis, should a crime committed during the deployment come to light during that two-year period. In exceptional circumstances there may be operational grounds to justify retention of ANPR data beyond the two-year period."

Home Office minister Paul Goggins said the Acpo guidance complies with all the relevant data-protection legislation.

He told MPs this week: "This document covers the European Convention for Human Rights. Data Protection, the Regulatory Investigative Powers Act 2000 and the Freedom of Information Act 2000 relating to the police use of ANPR (excluding speed enforcement devices) and is applicable to all police forces in England and Wales."

A £15m pilot of the technology is currently underway although the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) has been criticised in the past for providing the police with large numbers of incorrect records and data.

The new strategy lays out plans for a national network of ANPR-enabled cameras and a national centre to analyse the intelligence collected, and police claim it will help them drive criminals off the roads.