Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of storing the DNA profile of police officers on the National DNA database.

In order to address concerns around police vetting caused by high-profile cases of police abuse of power, the Home Secretary has asked the College of Policing to strengthen the statutory code of practice for police vetting to make the obligations all forces must legally follow stricter and clearer. Separately, the National Police Chiefs’ Council has asked all police forces to check their officers and staff against the police national database to help identify anyone who is unfit to serve.

The National DNA Database (NDNAD) can only hold the DNA profiles of people arrested for a recordable offence, under the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984. We have no plans to add the DNA profiles of police officers to the NDNAD.

The Police Regulations 2003 set out that a candidate for appointment as a police officer or special constable must undergo biometric vetting, with consent, and the chief officer must be satisfied with the results prior to appointment. More information on biometric checks and retention of DNA profiles are set out in the College of Policing’s vetting authorised professional practice (APP) guidance.