Forensic DNA ethics_PhaseI

Jamie Doward

Asylum seekers are to be subjected to DNA tests in an attempt to confirm their true nationalities, the Observer can reveal.

The UK Borders Agency believes this will help limit bogus asylum claims made by people arriving in the UK and pretending to have fled war zones so they cannot be deported. But the "Human Prevalence Pilot Project", which is being launched as a pilot and without fanfare, has been fiercely criticized by migrant support groups who describe it as "deeply flawed".

According to the Home Office, the scheme will involve taking "forensic samples provided on a voluntary basis from those suspected of abusing the asylum system". At first, the six-month pilot will target claimants arriving from the Horn of Africa.

The Borders Agency has been concerned for some time that Kenyans pass themselves off as Somalis in the hope of gaining asylum.

But the project could be expanded to other nationalities if successful, a Home Office spokeswoman confirmed. At first it will be used only on those who fail language analysis testing, which has been used for years to determine the country of origin, but is open to legal dispute.

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