Scientists Decry "Horrifying" UK Border Test Plan

cremeglace writes "Scientists are dismayed and outraged at a new project by the UK border agency to test DNA, hair, and nails to determine the nationality of asylum seekers and help decide if they can enter the UK. 'Horrifying,' 'naive,' and 'flawed' are among the words geneticists and isotope specialists have used to describe the 'Human Provenance pilot project.' The methods being used to determine ancestry include fingerprinting of mitochondrial DNA and isotope analysis of hair and nails. ScienceInsider blog notes that it is 'not clear who is conducting the DNA and isotope analyses for the Border Agency,' and that the agency has not 'cited any scientific papers that validate its DNA and isotope methods.' There is also a followup post with more information on the tests that are being used, and some reactions from experts in genetic forensic analysis. This story was first reported in The Observer on Sunday."

Re:DHS

[muckracer]

> mandatory DNS sample

DNA, of course. Your A-records are still safe :-)

My DNA profile

[Digestromath]

Would they look at my half Scotish side? Or the German half? Or would they look at it and say I came straight out of a chimp via Africa and Mesopotamia?

Re:PR

[Hognoxious]

British is as British does.

So no honour killings, but getting drunk and brawling is compulsory.

Re:Emigration is a Privilege, not a Right

[Anonymous Coward]

Ah, but you aren't considering the inevitable AI uprising... we will need every robot-smasher we can lay our hands on then.

Re:PR

[kalirion]

Seriously, wouldn't it just be easier to only let in the blond, blue eyed folks?

Re:Emigration is a Privilege, not a Right

[t_ban]

And, as we all know, any information gathered by the UK government is normally in the hands of random Indians, Nigerians and Russians, etc within days, and the information on database so corrupt as to be worthless in less than a year.

In your post against genetic fingerprinting, you are expressing ethnic prejudice. Are you being dumb, or intentionally ironical, or am I misreading you?

Re:Emigration is a Privilege, not a Right

[amplt1337]

Clearly it should've said "Your mommy ain't your mommy, but your mommy don't know." ...waitaminute...