§ 10. Mr. Dalyellasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will introduce legislation allowing the collection and storage of data about blood samples of convicted criminals, by forensic science laboratories, along the lines of the storage of finger print information.
§ 17. Mr. Costainasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he will consider bringing in legislation giving him powers to grant a month's remission of sentence to any prisoner who was willing to have a blood sample taken at the same time as the recording of his fingerprints.
§ 24. Mr. Goodhartasked the Secretary of State, for the Home Department if he intends to amend the rules governing the taking of blood samples from members of the public.
§ Mr. Alexander W. LyonThe taking of a blood sample from a person by the police, except under Section 9 of the Road Traffic Act 1972, requires that person's consent; we have no proposals to alter the position. The introduction of arrangements for collecting and retaining information about the blood types of convicted criminals would not at present be justified, but we are keeping in close touch with current research in this field.
§ Mr. DalyellOn what basis does Parliament deny the police the benefits of chemical analysis, a matter which would be of profit to them?
§ Mr. LyonBefore we can get to the issue of principle we have to ensure that it is scientifically possible to derive some benefit from the information.
§ Mr. DalyellMy hon. Friend knows that that is possible.
§ Mr. LyonThe issue of principle is one on which the House would certainly have divided views. I think that we would have to test public opinion before we proceeded.
§ Mr. CostainIs the Minister aware that the similarity between my Question and the Question of my hon. Friend the Member for Beckenham (Mr. Goodhart) is due to the fact that we have both been to the police laboratories and were terribly impressed by what we saw? Does the hon. Gentleman appreciate that the difference between the Conservative approach and the Socialist approach is that I seek to make it worth while for the criminal to give information whilst the Socialists seek to get blood at any price?
§ Mr. SpeakerOrder. That is a very interesting statement but it is not really a question.
§ Mr. CostainDoes the Minister appreciate that it is to the criminal's advantage, if he is to go straight, to give a sample of his blood so as to eliminate him from further suspicion? Could not that be made clear to the prisoner when being interviewed?
§ Mr. LyonAs I have said, there is clearly a division of opinion on the principles involved in this issue. I did not realise that the division was based on party dogma.