The government is to equip seven police forces in England with new live facial recognition vans in a bid to trace suspects of serious crimes, including murder and sexual assaults, more effectively.

The Home Office announced today that the forces will be given shared access to 10 new vans that can scan the faces of people passing by and match them against a database of suspects. Home Secretary Yvette Cooper said the technology would be used in a "targeted way" and has already been deployed in London, resulting in hundreds of arrests.

How does it work?
Specially trained officers staff the vans, which are usually posted at busy public spaces. Cameras scan the faces of people nearby in real-time, taking measurements of facial features, such as the distance between the eyes and the length of the jawline, to establish a set of unique biometric data. The data is automatically compared with a watchlist of suspects by the technology, which then flags to officers any potential matches.

Ministers and police leaders say it has been extremely effective in identifying criminals. According to the government, the Metropolitan Police made 580 arrests over 12 months using the technology, for offences including rape, knife crime and robbery.

Where will it be used?
Until now, only London and South Wales police have had access to permanent live facial recognition technology. But seven more forces across England – Greater Manchester, West Yorkshire, Bedfordshire, Surrey, Sussex, Thames Valley and Hampshire – will now share access to the 10 new vans.

What are the ethical concerns?
The biggest worries include invasion of privacy, a lack of regulation and accuracy. The majority of people scanned will be innocent but will be tracked by the technology regardless. Its accuracy has also been called into question. The Met says there have been just seven false alerts so far in 2025, but there have been notable cases in which innocent people were questioned after being falsely identified by the system. Campaigners also say there is a lack of regulation and oversight around the surveillance powers.

An American woman who disguised herself in a niqab to shoot her British lover's enemy has been found guilty of conspiracy to murder.

Aimee Betro, from Wisconsin, flew to the UK as part of a revenge plot orchestrated by Mohammed Nabil Nazir and his father, Mohammed Aslam. Betro tried to assassinate Sikander Ali at point-blank range outside his family home in Birmingham – but her gun jammed, allowing him to escape. 

Following the "botched" attack in 2019, Betro spent five years on the run, said CNN. She was arrested last summer in Armenia, extradited for trial in the UK and convicted yesterday at Birmingham Crown Court.

Feud between families
The prosecution alleged the attack was "the culmination of a feud between two families" in the Midlands, said The New York Times. The feud began in 2018, with a "fistfight" in a clothing boutique owned by Ali's father, Aslat Mahumad. The court heard that both Nazir and Aslam were injured and wanted to "exact revenge" on Mahumad and his family. But "the assassin they chose was far from local".

Betro, now 45, said she and Nazir had begun an online relationship after meeting on a dating app. On 7 September 2019, with her face covered, she pulled the trigger on a handgun aimed at Ali outside his family home. After the gun jammed, he "scrambled back into his vehicle, threw it into reverse and sped off". Betro abandoned her car nearby but returned a few hours later in a taxi, and fired three shots into his empty home. 

'Implausible account'
Betro claimed someone else carried out the shooting. It was "all just a terrible coincidence", she told the court, and a "small and fat" American woman, who wore the same trainers, was responsible. But the jury saw through "her implausible account", said The Times. 

Aslam, 56, and 31-year-old Nazir were both convicted last November for their part in the murder plot. Aslam was sentenced to 10 years and Nazir to 32 years, both for conspiracy to murder. After 21 hours of deliberation, jurors at Birmingham Crown Court found Betro guilty on Tuesday on charges of conspiracy to murder, possessing a gun with intent to cause fear of violence, and illegally importing ammunition. She is due to be sentenced on 21 August.

Young sheep handlers showcase their skills in the Gillingham and Shaftesbury Show, which celebrates England's rural traditions. Livestock judging, Shetland pony racing and jousting are among the events taking place to raise funds for the two Dorset towns' local agricultural society.

Finnbarr Webster / Getty Images

Children's reading enjoyment has plummeted to the lowest level in two decades, according to the National Literacy Trusts' latest annual survey. But there's no need to despair, with so many brilliant children's books to whet their literary appetites. We've whittled down a list of our favourites.

Wildlands by Broden Murphy, 8+
Set 25 years in a future where a "large swath of Britain has been extensively rewilded" and wolves roam free, this "memorable" eco-adventure transports young readers to another world, said Suzy Feay in the Financial Times. Thirteen-year-old Astrid and her little sister Indie are "stranded in this hazardous nature reserve" and must figure out how to survive.

When the Storm Comes by Polly Ho-Yen, 9+
This "gripping thriller" follows "misfits" Mali, Fara, Jonesey and Petey, said Imogen Russell Williams in The Guardian. "Trapped" in the school library with their teacher Ms Devine during a "terrible storm", the reluctant group must pull together as the "water rises and the danger increases". It's an "assured" and propulsive read, with themes spanning "loneliness, friendship and climate activism".

The Notwitches by Gary Panton, 7+
This fun illustrated book is a "triumph of nonsense", said Lucy Bannerman in The Times. Panton "earned his comedy stripes" writing for "The Beano" and certainly knows how to craft an entertaining read. Don't expect a message: his debut children's book is concerned with way more important things like "hairy motorcycle gangs and good running jokes about eating stationery".

The migrant hotel protests are all about class
Megan McElroy in The Spectator
"Class, not race, is the driving force" behind the protests at migrant hotels, writes Megan McElroy. "Working-class rage is boiling up in the UK" and social cohesion isn't "just breaking down; it's shattering". The protesters "aren't angry about ethnicity, but economics", arguing that "their neighbourhoods" are bearing the "brunt" of the "effects of immigration", which are "never properly addressed by politicians". There's a "rare political unity" at the protests: a "shared hatred" of Keir Starmer. 

Pope Leo Is Becoming the Climate Champion We Need
Mark Gongloff on Bloomberg
As "the leader of 340 million Americans furiously works to derail climate action, the leader of 1.4 billion Catholics is embracing it", writes Mark Gongloff. Pope Leo XIV has "championed" a solar-power plan for Vatican City and added "a 'green' Mass" to his Church's list of approved services. In a world that's "lost much of its appetite for climate action", you don't have to be religious to "appreciate" a "highly platformed voice speaking out for humanity's interests".

Older workers are being sent to the scrapheap
The Telegraph's editorial board
There's been a "dizzying growth" in the number of Britons "parked on benefits with no requirement to work", says The Telegraph. They include many older workers, in "what appears to be a form of tacit early retirement" that is "a waste of their talents and experience". In America, there's been a "significant" rise in the over-55 employment rate, and "if Westminster could bring itself to learn" from that, "it would be greatly to the benefit" of our nation.