Home Secretary Proposes Panopticon-Style AI Surveillance

UK Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood on January 24, 2026 said she envisions using AI and technology to create a 'panopticon' allowing continuous state surveillance to pre-empt crime. The piece cites a 2025 pilot under Keir Starmer's government requiring licensed offenders to submit short video check-ins for AI identity verification and government statements proposing predictive crime tools. The proposals have prompted parliamentary debate and privacy law concerns.