2025/28657 - ROTI and ROVI Transcripts

REQUEST

This freedom of information request relates to Record of Taped Interview (ROTI) and Record of Video Interview (ROVI) transcripts of police-suspect interviews. Some of the questions were included in a 2022 FOI request on the same topic, and some new questions focus on the use of speech technologies. Given the rapid growth of Artificial Intelligence in the last three years, please could you provide answers to the following questions?

1. How many ROTI/ROVI transcribers are currently employed by your police force?
2. Are ROTI/ROVI transcribers employees of your police force or is the work outsourced to an external agency? If outsourced, which external agency is the work outsourced to?
3. What, if any, formal or informal guidance are ROTI/ROVI transcribers provided with for the purpose of producing transcripts?
4. Does your police force produce ROTI/ROVIs (MG15s) for Magistrates' Court cases, or only for Crown Court? If not, what record of the suspect interview is provided for Magistrates' Court cases?
5. Does your police force use, or are you planning to use, automatic transcription systems to produce ROTI/ROVI transcripts?
6. If the answer to question 5 was "yes" - does/will the use of automatic transcription involve an automatic transcription system developed specifically for your police force or an existing automatic transcription system from an external provider?
7. Does your police force use, or are you planning to use, automatic transcription systems to produce transcripts of other types of audio/video recordings (e.g. emergency calls, body-worn camera footage, witness interviews)?

RESPONSE