To ask the Scottish Executive how many DNA profiles obtained from DNA samples collected by the police in Scotland have been exported to the National DNA Database in England in each year since 1995.

Full statistics are only available for the last seven years and are as follows:

Totals shown are for the years commencing 1 January to 31 December.

The Scottish DNA Database exports copies of all DNA profiles it holds to the National DNA Database but does not export the DNA samples. A DNA sample is the sample that contains the individual’s full DNA which is taken from the individual by means such as a mouth swab. A DNA profile is the numerical sequence derived from a DNA sample by a process which destroys the original sample. It is based on a number of markers from the short-tandem repeat areas of DNA which do not contain genetically significant information but vary markedly between different people, which is why DNA profiles are effective at distinguishing between different people.