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Isabella Sankey, director of policy for Liberty, said: "We understand that half a loaf is better than no bread - leaving the current law on DNA retention completely unamended would put us in flagrant breach of the Court of Human Rights judgment.

"We look forward to a new Government of whatever colour going much further to protect the rights of innocent people who will continue to have their DNA stockpiled for years on end under this heavily compromised deal."

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Notes to Editors

1. In December 2008, the European Court of Human Rights found Britain’s DNA retention regime – under which millions of innocent profiles are held – to be a disproportionate interference with personal privacy rights under Article 8 of the Human Rights Convention.

2. Liberty agrees that a carefully managed DNA database can be a valuable crime detection tool. However, repeated legislative changes have rolled out retention policy by stealth so that anyone arrested for even very minor offences can have their DNA held for the rest of their lives, even if they have been mistakenly arrested. DNA is relevant only to a small number of serious offences, mainly involving sexual assault or violence. Liberty believes that the correct and proportionate approach to the National DNA Database would be based on allowing retention of DNA for those convicted or cautioned for these types of serious offence.