DNA details of innocent will be kept for six years

The government has announced that it plans to keep innocent people's DNA details for up to six years.

In response to a consultation it launched last December, the government said in a statement on Wednesday that it would "remove the DNA profiles of all adults arrested but not charged or convicted of any recordable offence after six years".

However, the Times reported on Wednesday that terrorism suspects could still have their DNA retained indefinitely.

A Home Office spokesperson told ZDNet UK on Wednesday that people's DNA deemed to be of "national interest" will be stored for longer than six years. That retention will be reviewed every two years by a senior police officer.

The government was forced to rethink its policy on DNA retention following the outcome of a test case last year. The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) ruled in December that two people, Michael Marper, and a person identified as 'S', had their rights infringed by the UK government indefinitely storing their DNA.

At the time, legal site Out-Law.com reported that ECHR had not offered guidance as to how the UK government could comply with human rights law with respect to DNA.