BASINGSTOKE MP Maria Miller has welcomed a new law which will make the revenge posting of explicit images illegal.

So-called “revenge pornography” is the uploading of sexually explicit images to the internet, without the consent of the person. It is designed to cause the victim distress or embarrassment.

As previously reported by The Gazette, Mrs Miller has been campaigning for a change in the law to protect victims, and to make the act a criminal offence as, before now, there was no law to protect the victims.

And MPs supported the plans last week after the bill, which will see the posting of explicit images a criminal offence punishable by up to two years in prison, received support from the House of Lords.

The bill will now need to be granted royal assent from The Queen before it is formally made law.

Mrs Miller told The Gazette: “I think this is an important step forward in making the internet a safer place for people to use.

“This is really important news for all those people who contacted me from many areas in the country who were affected by the posting of explicit images without their consent, and it caused people to consider taking their own lives because of the shame they felt it had brought upon them.”