Law over rape victims could change after Ched Evans case

Exonerated footballer Ched Evans has defended the decision to allow details of the complainant's sex life to feature in his retrial Credit: Press Association

The Attorney General has suggested the law could be changed to give greater protection to alleged rape victims following the Ched Evans case.

The Welsh footballer was found not guilty of raping a 19-year-old woman at a retrial following a five-year battle to clear his name.

In a rare move, the jury at Cardiff Crown Court heard evidence from two men who had sex with the complainant around the time of the rape allegation.

The decision sparked concern that women will be put off reporting sex assaults to the police, and former solicitor general Vera Baird warned the case put Britain back "probably about 30 years".

Forty female Labour MPs - including Grimsby's Melanie Onn - are now campaigning to stop courts hearing the sexual history of rape complainants.

Jeremy Wright QC said the subject is of "concern" and suggested the law and guidance around the admission of a complainant's sexual history in criminal trials could be reformed.

Speaking in Attorney General Questions in the Commons, Mr Wright said:

Mr Wright said the legal provision allowing an alleged victim's sexual history to be used in evidence is not "routinely" used.

But he added: