Police STILL working with AI tool used to support fan ban from Aston Villa clash
Over 20 police forces are still using the AI tool that was blocked by West Midlands Police after inaccurate evidence formed a decision to ban Israeli football fans from attending the clash against Aston Villa.
A “hallucination” on Microsoft’s Copilot AI was responsible for generating a match that never happened, which was included in an intelligence document justifying banning Maccabi Tel Aviv fans from attending the game at Villa Park in November.
The Israeli fans were barred from travelling to the game in Birmingham on November 6 by the local safety advisory group (SAG), which cited safety concerns based on advice from West Midlands Police (WMP).
Chief Constable Craig Guildford stepped down from the top role following mounting pressure from politicians for him to quit over the controversy.
Now, at least 21 police forces are still using the Copilot tool, with eight forces across the UK definitively saying the software could not be used in investigations, reports Sky News.
Forces covering Northern Ireland and Scotland do not allow Copilot, while there are also blocks in place for North Wales and Dyfed-Powys forces.
However Chair of the National Police Data and Analytics Board and Humberside Police Chief Constable Chris Todd insisted AI is “providing benefits to our communities” to join up data and reduce delays to stop criminals.
Meanwhile, Greater Manchester Police, England’s second-largest police force after the Met, defended the use of AI.
A spokesman told Sky News: “We have a robust AI policy in place to help promote the use of such technology to speed up processes and ensure officers have more time to be on the streets rather than behind their desks.”
Copilot is still used by some police forces across the UK
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Police insisted twice in committee hearings that the software was not responsible for generating the report about a non-existent match between the Israeli club and West Ham United before admitting that it was and apologising.
Microsoft has stood by its software and pointed to differences between the 365 Copilot service for workplaces and the free Copilot consumer chat service for general use online.
A Microsoft spokesman said: “Microsoft 365 Copilot is grounded in an organisation’s own data, security, and access controls, works only with information a user already has permission to access, and provides citations, so sources can be reviewed and verified.
“We continuously evaluate and improve our services and encourage organisations to use Copilot within their own governance and review practices.”
Police forces outside Villa Park
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The National Police Chief’s Council said it “is confident that the potential benefits of using AI outweigh the risks posed, provided we remain committed and vigilant in using it correctly, responsibly and securely”.
Publishing a report on the row, the Home Affairs Committee said it also could not rule out that political pressure had played a part in the decision.
The report said WMP’s concerns about disorder “combined with local political pressure and community tensions related to the international situation” led to the move.
The report continued: “While we cannot conclude that the Safety Advisory Group’s decision was made because of political pressure, on the basis of the evidence we have seen we also cannot conclude with any confidence that the decision was not politically influenced.”
Protests were held outside the match last year
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The Home Office and the Department for Culture, Media and Sport were told on October 8 last year that Maccabi fans were likely to be barred, a week before the decision was announced.
The Israeli team’s fans could still have been able to come “if the Government had intervened privately at this point”, the committee concluded.
On the day the decision was made public, Sir Keir Starmer posted on X calling it “the wrong decision” and saying the Government “will not tolerate antisemitism on our streets”.
The same day, Shabana Mahmood posted on X that the Government “is doing everything in our power to ensure all fans can safely attend the game”.
The match at Villa Park went ahead without the Israeli fans in attendance
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West Midlands Police’s new acting chief said he is now focused on repairing the damage the Maccabi Tel Aviv fan banning row has caused to the Jewish community.
Scott Green, who was appointed acting chief constable after Mr Guildford stepped down from the top role, said he declared a critical incident as the force looks to recover from the fallout of the incident.
He said: “The direct impact of our actions has been a loss of the trust and confidence from the public in the West Midlands, more specifically, I know we have damaged our relationship with individuals and the Jewish community, locally, nationally and internationally.”
Mr Green said he had met with members of the Jewish community in January and said he was “personally saddened” to hear the impact the force’s actions had had on the public.
