There are many creative ventures intended to support long term retention of data while still making that data accessible.

FORBES: Adventures in Archiving

They believe it is necessary to extend the retention of data to emails and internet traffic in order to combat serious crime, including terrorism.

BBC: Public consultation on 'web snooping' plans ends

Home Secretary Alan Johnson told the Commons that DNA profiles had had a "profound impact" in bringing criminals to justice, defending the retention of data even of people who were not convicted of a crime.

BBC: Crime and Security Bill