DNA database moves a step closer

Long-awaited legislation establishing a DNA database is expected to be passed by the Oireachtas before the summer recess, Justice Minister Alan Shatter has said.

Some seven years on from when the system was first proposed, the Criminal Justice (Forensic Evidence and DNA Database System) Bill 2013 completed its committee stage yesterday.

Mr Shatter said it was an “important day” for the Oireachtas Justice Committee and said he hoped to have it through both houses of the Oireachtas before the summer break. The minister described the legislation as “ground-breaking” and said the database was a “very important tool in the fight against crime.”