The proposed Police Bill 2026 introduced in Parliament yesterday includes new powers allowing the Police Commissioner to direct police officers and police associates to provide body samples and biometric information in certain circumstances.
Under the proposed legislation, the Commissioner may order a member of Police staff or a Police associate to provide a body sample if there are reasonable grounds to suspect the person has used illicit drugs listed under the Illicit Drugs Control Act 2004.
“Subject to subsection (3), the Commissioner may direct a member of Police staff or a Police associate to provide a body sample if the Commissioner has reasonable grounds to suspect that a member of Police staff or a Police associate has used an illicit drug,” the Bill states.
The Bill also allows the Commissioner to request body samples or biometric information from police personnel to eliminate them as suspects during criminal investigations.
However, the proposed law limits the use of such information strictly to the intended purpose.
“The Commissioner may only direct a member of Police or Police associate to provide a body sample or biometric information that is relevant to the purpose of the direction,” the Bill states.
The legislation further provides safeguards regarding the use of biometric information collected for drug testing.
“Staff biometric information provided under section 29(1) is not admissible as evidence in any criminal proceedings against the person who provided the information,” the Bill states.
The information “must be used only for determining whether the person has used an illicit drug”.
If laboratory analysis confirms illicit drug use, the officer or police associate would automatically be considered to have breached the code of conduct.
“If the analysis determines that the person has used the illicit drug, he or she is deemed to have breached the code of conduct and Part 7 applies,” the Bill states.
The proposed legislation also outlines strict storage and destruction requirements for biometric information and DNA profiles collected by Police.
The Commissioner would be required to ensure that DNA profiles are established from collected body samples and stored in the Force database, while physical body samples must be destroyed promptly.
The Bill also requires all biometric information to be permanently deleted and destroyed within 12 months after a person ceases to be a member of Police staff or a Police associate.
“The Commissioner must ensure that all staff biometric information collected by the Police under section 29 is deleted permanently from the Force database and destroyed if the information is held in hard-copy form,” the Bill states.
The Bill now go through the Standing Committee process before being brought into Parliament at a future sitting.
