NORTH Yorkshire's police and fire chief has welcomed news that the Law Commission will examine legislation on revenge porn.

Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner Julia Mulligan, who leads the No More Naming campaign calling for anonymity for revenge porn victims, said the decision is a huge step in the right direction, however the movement towards a change of legislation is not happening quickly enough.

Mrs Mulligan said:“This is a huge step in the right direction of ensuring there is no more naming of revenge porn victims - but it needs to happen now.

“Every day we wait is a day when even more victims not only face having their most intimate moments shared online, but have to face their identity being known too.

“That’s not fair and it’s not right. It needs to change.

“ I urge the Law Commission to examine this quickly and Ministers to legislate as soon as possible so victims of revenge porn aren’t put off reporting the crime and get the anonymity they deserve.”

More than 15,000 have signed the campaign’s petition calling for a change in the law so victims of revenge porn have the same rights as victims of other types of sexual assault and have their identity protected by law.

Revenge porn is the sharing of private sexual photos and videos of a person without their permission to cause humiliation.

Those found guilty can be jailed for up to two years

Last year, The Press reported that revenge porn offences reported to police had tripled across North Yorkshire between 2015 and 2018, with the youngest recorded victim just 12-years-old.

And the NSPCC has previously called for social media companies to do more to stop revenge porn being shared.

Victims can call the Revenge Porn Helpline on 0345 6000459 or for more information from the NSPCC call 0808 8005000.