Hundreds of children made to wear GPS tags by UK’s Ministry of Justice

Each year, hundreds of children who commit serious crimes are tagged with GPS ankle tags, allowing the UK Ministry of Justice (MoJ) to track their location 24 hours a day. new scientist can reveal. Children as young as 12 years old are being monitored as part of this plan, which will start in 2021. Activists and researchers say the use of tags is unnecessary and has not been proven effective.

Lucy Audibert of UK charity Privacy International said: “Existing research by medical and human rights groups suggests that GPS tagging is often experienced as an open prison and highly stigmatized. I know,” he said. She “also questions the necessity and proportionality of her GPS location tracking of these children every minute of the day.”

GPS ankle tags were first introduced in England and Wales in 2018 to monitor adults convicted of crimes such as robbery and knife crime and released from prison on probation. It can be time-stamped and can be used to ensure criminals stay away from certain locations, such as the victim’s home, and attend court-mandated visits.

In March 2021, the use of tags was extended to users under the age of 18 who have committed a serious violent or sexual crime.Freedom of Information Request Now new scientist revealed that in 2021, 388 children under the age of 18 were given GPS tags. The youngest was 13 years old. Figures for 2022 show that 550 of her children, including a 12-year-old, were monitored using GPS tags.

Northern Ireland does not use GPS tags and Scotland does not use GPS tags for child offenders. A Justice Department spokeswoman said the tags are used in England and Wales to protect children and keep them away from crime and criminal exploitation.

“It could also be used to keep people away from schools and areas known to have gang activity or affiliation,” the spokesperson said. “Their welfare has always been our top priority, with clear safeguards ensuring that they are used only when absolutely necessary.”

However, Elizabeth Paddock of the University of Nottingham, UK, who has conducted a systematic review of electronic surveillance of criminals, says it is unclear whether tags will achieve these goals. “There are none, and there are few published studies showing lower recidivism rates in those who have electronic monitoring,” she says.

“It is important to assess how and why electronic surveillance deters criminal behavior in the short term, and whether such methods can achieve long-term criminal change,” Paddock says.

“Like other interventions used in criminal justice, they may be used effectively for their proper purposes, and likewise may not be used effectively where they should not be applied in the first place. There is,” she says.