To safeguard lone women, UK looks for 'walk me home' phone-tracker

Amid ongoing outrage over the killings of two young women near their homes in London, a UK government official is looking to back a company's proposal for a new tracking service to help protect women walking alone.  

In a letter to Home Secretary Priti Patel, Britain's biggest phone company BT’s chief executive proposed the 'walk me home' service.  

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In the letter, Philip Jansen said, once a woman activated an app on her phone, the service would track her journey and send an alert to her emergency contacts if she didn't reach her destination on time.  

Confirming Patel received the letter, the UK Home Office said she would respond in 'due course’.  

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In comments to the Daily Mail, Patel was more supportive. "This new phone line is exactly the kind of innovative scheme, which would be good to get going as soon as we can. I'm now looking at it with my team and liaising with BT,'' the newspaper quoted Patel as saying.   

The 'walk me home' service could be up and running by Christmas, reported the Mail. The service may complement Britain's existing nationwide emergency number, said Jansen.   

(With inputs from agencies)