Commander Dave Johnston said that he thought it is acceptable for DNA samples to be taken from babies as young as four days old. He thinks that as blood samples are already taken at that time to test for genetic diseases, it would be easy.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/6172769.stm
What is not easy for me, is to understand how a person working at the top of a government led institution tries to justify targetting babies as potential criminals. How they propose to get consent for this from parents, or whether they would need to, is not mentioned.
Mr Woodburn, the headteacher at Ghyllside Primary School in Kendal, devised a spy game for children in order to take their fingerprints for a print-recognition library system at the school. He told children that it would not be necessary to tell their parents.
http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/news/article-23388467-details/Children%20tricked%20into%20giving%20fingerprints...%20by%20headmaster/article.do?expand=true
We should not allow the government to start labelling our children, or to have any power in making a judgment over their future behaviour. Who's to say what the DNA database would be used for in the years to come. If any child does exhibit 'inappropriate' behaviour then the underlying causes of that behaviour should be investigated, and a solution found that involves other human beings.
Nobody can tell what a child will grow into, or how they will get there. There are plenty of examples that show that children from grinding poverty or that have come into contact with the criminal justice system, can grow up to be dynamic and respected members of society.
If we start rigidly enforcing strict formalities on peoples behaviour, there will be a distortion in the element of being human that we prize the most - our exceptional uniqueness. Having rules that cannot be broken will stifle the progression of our society and will allow us only an artificial intelligence.
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