Over 90,000 innocent people have been added to theDNA databasesince the European Court of Human Rights
(ECHR)ruled against the practice.
The figures, which were obtained by the Liberal Democrats,
showed 433,752 DNA profiles had been added to the database since
the ECHR ruling on 5 December 2008, equalling 1,480 per day. In the
same period, only 611 profiles were removed.
There are now nearly 5.5 million DNA profiles on the database
relating to 4.8 million people. The government estimated in 2008
that 20% of people on the database are innocent - meaning records
of one million innocent people may be held on it.
The Home Office recently dropped proposals to keep the DNA of
innocent people for
12 years, but privacy campaigners want it to go further.
The Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) is pressuring
the Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO) to change guidance
to chief constables that tells them to continue collecting DNA
profiles of innocent people.
The commission said, "The commission believes that guidance
given by ACPO to chief constables does not meet the ECHR
requirement for there to be clear and justifiable reasons for
holding the DNA data from people who have not been convicted of a
crime."
It
gave ACPO 28 days from 19 October to confirm that the advice
will be withdrawn. It said it will consider taking "formal
enforcement action" if ACPO fails to do so.
John Wadham, group director legal at the EHRC, said, "We can see
no reason why ACPO should not change its guidance on the retention
of DNA."
Shadow Cabinet Office minister
Jenny Willott said, "It is appalling that the government has
allowed over a million innocent people to be added to the DNA
database. Despite the European ruling that the practice is a breach
of human rights, for every innocent DNA profile removed from the
database, around 150 new ones are added.
"The Home Office needs to put an end to this charade by removing
all innocent people from the database, once and for all."