Government must now remove all innocents from the DNA database

12.00.00am BST (GMT +0100) Tue 20th Oct 2009

Commenting on the Government dropping its plans, contained in the Policing and Crime Bill, to keep the DNA profiles of innocent people on its DNA database for between 6 to 12 years, Jenny Willott, Welsh Liberal Democrat MP, a leading Parliamentary campaigner on this issue, said:

"The Government have finally acknowledged that their position is untenable after it was savaged by so many experts.

"The Government has behaved appallingly on this issue allowing nearly 1 million innocent people's DNA to collect on to the database.

"What's more, by dragging their heels for nearly a year since the European court ruled it was illegal, more than 80,000 extra innocent people have been added to the database.

"The Government must not try and fudge this again. Innocent people should be removed from the database immediately."