1.7m DNA Profiles Cut From Database

More than 1.7 million DNA profiles of innocent adults and children have been deleted from the national database, ministers have revealed.

As part of the Government's commitment to slim down the amount of information held by the state, more than 1.6 million fingerprint records from innocent people have also been deleted.

Some 480,000 of the DNA profiles removed from the database were from children, Criminal Information Minister Lord Taylor of Holbeach told Parliament.

In a written statement he said the Government had " delivered its commitment to reform the retention of DNA and fingerprint records by removing innocent people from the databases, and adding the guilty".

Some 7,753,000 samples, containing "sensitive personal biological material", have been destroyed because they are no longer needed as they have been used to create a profile.

Lord Taylor said 1,766,000 DNA profiles from innocent people had been deleted from the National DNA Database (NDNAD) and 1,672,000 fingerprint records had been removed from the national fingerprint database.

He added: " At the same time, 6,800 convicted murderers and sex offenders, not on the database under...