Paul Gambaccini: No charges were brought

Men accused of rape and other sex crimes should remain anonymous until they are charged, MPs demand today.

They have urged a shake-up of the law after several high-profile figures were arrested and named, only to see their cases dropped.

Last year, BBC Radio 2 DJ Paul Gambaccini told of the ‘12 months of horror and trauma’ he suffered after his name was dragged through the mud following sexual assault accusations.

Police eventually told him he would not be charged.

In January, Tory MP Mark Pritchard called for those accused of rape to be allowed anonymity until they are charged after an accusation against him was dropped by police.

But critics warned the move risked reducing the chance of serial rapists being convicted, and could endanger women who do not know a man has been accused of rape.

They said that if predatory paedophiles such as Rolf Harris and Stuart Hall had been granted anonymity as suspects, other victims may not have come forward to help convict them.

Lifelong anonymity is granted to anyone who complains to police that they have been sexually assaulted.

In May 2010, the Coalition vowed to reintroduce anonymity for rape suspects after it was dropped in 1988. But ministers faced huge opposition to the idea and axed it.

In a report today, the Commons Home Affairs Select Committee warned that a man accused of rape can suffer irreparable damage to his life, even if charges are never brought. It concluded that because of the stigma attached to rape accusations, it was unacceptable for suspects to have their identities publicised before they were charged.

The MPs face being accused of trying to curb the freedom of the Press by calling for zero tolerance of police who confirm the names of suspects to journalists other than in ‘exceptional cases’ – such as public safety. Chairman Keith Vaz said: ‘Suspects deserve to remain anonymous until charged. Police use of the “flypaper” practice of arresting someone, leaking the details then endlessly re-bailing them in the vague hope that other people come forward is unacceptable and must come to an end.

Critics say other victims may not have come forward if predatory paedophiles such as Rolf Harris, pictured left, and Stuart Hall, pictured right, had been granted anonimity

‘It is inexcusable that information about suspects is released to the media in an unattributed way. We have seen how destructive this can be to a person’s livelihood, causing irreparable reputational damage and enormous financial burden.’

The committee also said police bail should be capped initially at 28 days to end the scandal of officers leaving suspects to languish in legal limbo, sometimes for years.

Around 303,000 suspects a year are given police bail while officers investigate a crime. Around 19,600 were bailed for more than six months – often with curbs on their freedom.