KEY POINTS:
Police say they rarely use DNA samples taken from newborn babies to help their investigations.
The Privacy Commissioner has suggested in a submission to the Health Ministry that two million DNA samples, taken from a heel-prick test of babies born since 1969, should be destroyed or transferred to a secure authority.
The newborn blood spot cards, known as the Guthrie cards, are taken to check and screen for childhood diseases.
About 60,000 babies are screened for 28 disorders each year, with about 45 infants affected.
The samples are stored indefinitely as part of the National Screening Unit's newborn metabolic screening programme.
Privacy Commissioner Marie Shroff said the "dizzying" pace of technology meant the samples could be used in genetic screening for employment or criminal purposes.
New Zealand police national forensic services adviser Inspector John Walker said police rarely used the Guthrie cards.
In 2004, police used the samples to identify a tsunami victim, said Mr Walker.
There was a memorandum of understanding between police and the national testing centre.
Ms Shroff said DNA samples were a "rich store of information, not only about the subject, but also about his or her relatives".
She has suggested destroying the data or keeping the data in control of a separate agency, governed by strict legislation
The Health Ministry is reviewing the programme's policy options.
- NZPA
