39,000 innocent children on national DNA database

by Paul Conneally | August 15, 2008 at 11:31 am

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Britain is already the most spied on nation in the world having more CCTV cameras than any other country and now the population is systematically being DNA profiled by the government at any available opportunity. Today's news that already 39,000 children who have not committed, crimes but have come into contact with the police have been placed on the national DNA database further fuels civil rights activist arguments that a National DNA Database is being compiled by stealth. Once on the database it is virtually impossible to get off again. Some argue that it can do nothing but good "If you've done nothing wrong why would you worry about being on a DNA database?" others see it as ever rising state control - another nail in the coffin of personal liberty.

The national DNA database contains the profiles of almost 40,000 innocent children, the Home Office said today.

Junior minister Meg Hillier said the profiles of an estimated 39,095 10 to 17-year-olds who "had not been convicted, cautioned, received a final warning/reprimand and had no charge pending against them" were on the database.

Opposition parties said it was evidence the Government was building a national DNA database by stealth and called for a parliamentary debate on the issue.

Ms Hillier was responding to a parliamentary question from Tory Grant Shapps (Welwyn Hatfield).

She said figures obtained from the National DNA Database (NDNAD) and Police National Computer (PNC) in April showed there were 349,934 DNA profiles relating to under-18s, equivalent to around 303,393 individuals due to replication rates.

"Of those estimated 303,393 persons, 264,297 (87.1 per cent) had a conviction, caution, reprimand or had received a final warning," she said.

"And 39,095 (12.8 per cent) had not been convicted, cautioned, received a final warning/reprimand and had no charge pending against them."