The police officer leading policy on the National DNA Database has said it should not be extended to the entire population.
Chris Simms, chief constable of West Midlands Police and forensics lead for the Association of Chief Police Officers (Acpo), told MPs that existing use of the database is appropriate for its purpose, and that including profiles of the whole population would make it too expensive to run.
He was providing evidence to the House of Commons Home Affairs Select Committee in a session on the database. Currently everybody arrested in Britain has to provide DNA, and the government has been heavily criticised for retaining profiles of people not charged or found innocent.
In response to a question from Gwyn Prosser MP on whether the database should contain DNA profiles of the whole population, Simms replied: "If we get into the realms of a national database for everyone the cost benefit would tilt heavily against its maintenance and public acceptability would turn against it. The current situation is proportionate and manageable."
He also defended the performance of the database, despite providing figures that show it is used for solving just 45,000 of 4.9 million crimes — 0.67 percent — per year. Simms claimed the proportion is significantly higher for more serious crimes and for burglaries, although he did not provide figures in support of the claim.
Several committee members expressed concern over reports that police forces are inconsistent in responding to requests to delete profiles of people proved innocent. Simms acknowledged a need for more consistency, but resisted suggestions that the decisions should be made by a central body rather than individual police forces.
"There is probably some administrative advantage, but it is moving to a position where data is owned centrally," he said. "One of the strengths of British policing is that data is owned by the 43 chief constables, not by a centralised body. I think we would have to think very carefully about moving data to a centralised body."
Alan Campbell, minister for crime reduction in the Home Office, said there may be a case for such a body, but that the database is an operational tool. He said chief constables should continue to play an important role, adding that there is a need for a balanced approach.
He also insisted, despite being reminded of the figures provided by Simms, that "the DNA database is crucial in the fight against crime".
Campbell also defended the government's widely criticised proposal, included in the Crime and Security Bill, that DNA profiles of those arrested but found innocent or not charged should be retained for six years. In late 2008 the European Court of Human Rights ruled against the policy in England of indefinite retention.
"A group of people are often arrested but not convicted, and our research shows that for the next six years they are most likely to reoffend," he said, claiming the public will support this approach.
