Storage Of Child DNA Is Slammed

Children’s rights campaigners have slammed the Government for turning children into lifelong suspects after figures revealed more than 100,000 innocent young people are on the National DNA Database.

The briefing published last week by GeneWatch UK and Action on Rights for Children calculates that in the past year alone more than 80,000 children and young people were added to the database. Terri Dowty, director of Action on Rights for Children, said: “These children will be on the database for the rest of their lives. We are turning thousands of innocent children into lifelong suspects.”

But a Home Office spokeswoman said the database had “revolutionised” the way the police can protect the public. “Those who are innocent have nothing to fear from providing a sample,” she said.