Government refuses to keep DNA of innocent people

The Home Office has rejected demands from Labour MPs to retain the DNA profiles of people who are not convicted of a crime.

James Brokenshire, junior Home Office minister, accused Labour MPs demanding continued retention of the records of being “very casual with people’s liberties” after Shadow Labour Home Affairs spokeswoman Yvette Cooper claimed there was “growing concern” over plans to scrap records.

Mr Brokenshire added: “They seem to assume that simply because someone is arrested for a crime, they are guilty. We take a different view.”

According to our sister publication Computing, Mr Brokenshire said in cases where an individual is arrested for a sexual offence, but not subsequently charged, the police could apply to a new biometrics commissioner for the retention of the DNA profile for three years.

The UK’s DNA-retention policy under the last Government was severely criticised by the European Court of Human Rights. In 2008 it ruled that when a person has not been convicted of an offence they are “entitled to the presumption of innocence”.

The court said the Government “had overstepped any acceptable margin of appreciation in this regard”. The UK was ordered to reduce the length of time it planned to retain the DNA of people who have never been convicted of a crime.

Mr Brokenshire disputed Labour’s claim that retention was necessary. “The Government’s approach is based on putting on the national DNA database more people who are guilty of crimes, rather than those who are innocent. Simply increasing the size of the DNA database does not necessarily result in more detections.”