Law to tackle 'revenge porn': Justice Secretary says Government is keen to have 'serious discussion' on new legislation

Chris Graying warned the practice is becoming a bigger problem in Britain

There are 30 UK websites used to post intimate pictures of former lovers



Former culture secretary Maria Miller campaigning for Government to act



Tory MP said images, usually impossible to remove from the internet, were a 'form of sexual violence'



Justice Secretary Chris Grayling said the Government is keen to have a 'serious discussion' about 'revenge pornography'

Ministers are seriously considering a change to the law to protect women from ex-partners who publish explicit pictures of them on the internet.

Chris Grayling, the Justice Secretary, told MPs yesterday that the Government was looking to take ‘appropriate action’ to tackle so-called ‘revenge porn’, which he described as a ‘big problem in our society’.

Mr Grayling was speaking after a question in the Commons by Maria Miller, the former culture secretary, who is campaigning for action on revenge porn.

Two weeks ago Mr Grayling told the Mail that it ‘was only right that we look at ways’ that existing sexual offences laws could be amended to outlaw it.

There are about 30 websites in the UK used by ex-boyfriends and husbands to post intimate pictures of former lovers, but there is no specific law against the practice.

Women usually find the images are impossible to completely remove from the internet, as they are often reproduced on other websites within minutes.

Tory MP Mrs Miller said a law to ban revenge porn was urgently needed in the UK.

She added: ‘This is a form of sexual violence against women. What I want to do is make sure we have the right legal protection in place for these women.’

The Ministry of Justice is now looking at how that could be addressed.

Mr Grayling said the Government was ‘very open’ to having a ‘serious discussion’ about the practice with a view to ‘taking appropriate action’ when Parliament returns from its summer recess.

The Justice Secretary said the uploading of sexually explicit media to the internet without the consent of the subject is becoming a bigger problem in Britain.

Former culture secretary Maria Miller called for a change in the law to tackle the 'appalling practice'

He said the Criminal Justice and Courts Bill could be the vehicle for any change.

During justice questions in the Commons, Mr Grayling told Mrs Miller: ‘You have done a very important job in raising this issue. It’s clearly becoming a bigger problem.

‘What I’d say to you today is the Government is very open to having a serious discussion about this with a view to taking appropriate action in the autumn if we can identify the best way of doing so.’

Mrs Miller had asked: ‘Posting revenge pornography on the internet is an appalling crime.

'Do you agree that the law needs to change to ensure that perpetrators are properly punished and that perhaps the Criminal Justice and Courts Bill, currently in the Lords, could provide the Government an opportunity to do just that?’







