'Problem' children to be monitored for signs of criminality

Tony Blair faced charges of taking a step further towards turning Britain into a surveillance state, after he set out plans to monitor children for signs of criminality, to allow police to collect more DNA samples, and to expand the use of CCTV cameras.

He also announced proposals to restrict the activities of career criminals after their release from prison and to review the operation of the police service.

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Critics of the plan, which was published yesterday, said it was an erosion of civil liberties under the cover of fighting crime. Most controversial was a proposal to "establish universal checks throughout a child's development" to "identify those at most at risk of offending".

The tests could take place at key moments in a child's life, including the move from primary to secondary school, but it was unclear what form they would take.

Downing Street also suggested health visitors could intervene before the birth of children judged at risk of falling into a life of crime. They could regularly check on "disadvantaged mothers from pregnancy until the child is aged two", it said.

The policy review documentalso raises the idea of a further expansion of the DNA database, which already holds more than four million samples, proportionately far more than in any Western country. The database could be widened to include "all suspected offenders who come into contact with the police".

Downing Street wants the introduction of mobile fingerprint readers for police and "more sophisticated CCTV", including technology that checks images against those of known terrorists and criminals.

As disclosed by The Independent this week, the plans raised the prospect of ending the drive for tougher sentences for offenders, replacing them with more emphasis on rehabilitation.

Mr Blair called for a new drive against the core of criminals responsible for a high proportion of offences. They would be put on "prolific offender licences" - punishable by up to three years of jail if breached.

Mr Blair told a conference on crime: "We have to ensure that, when people leave prison, they do not rebound straight back in. These people have serious problems and targeting the offender means taking those problems seriously."

His plans also suggested giving police more power to seize criminals' property. Courts could be ranked according to performance, with poor-performing courts facing improvement measures.

A review of the police service will be conducted by the Chief Inspector of Constabulary, Sir Ronnie Flanagan. He will try to find ways of reducing bureaucracy, stepping up neighbourhood policing and managing resources more effectively.

Phil Booth, spokesman for the No2ID group, said: "These plans amounts to surveillance from the womb to the grave."

David Davis, the shadow Home Secretary, said the plans to test children "could amount to nothing more than ineffective and costly intervention in the lives of innocent people".

Sir Menzies Campbell, the Liberal Democrat leader, said: "This demonstrates the Prime Minister's obsession with big centralised databases. These databases are expensive, threaten our privacy and remain vulnerable to organised crime."