Sir Cliff Richard has been Cleared of Child Sex Allegations

As Cliff Richard is cleared of sex abuse claims

 - should accused remain anonymous?

BY ALISON PHILLIPS

Cliff Richard has been cleared of child sex allegations

672 days after police raided his home

Sir Cliff Richard has been cleared of child sex allegations

Entertainer Sir Cliff Richard has been told he will not be prosecuted over child sex allegations.

It has been 672 days since police raided the 75-year-old's home and it was broadcast live on the BBC.

Furious Sir Cliff has accused officers of hanging him out like "live bait" and said his reputation had been permanently tarnished by South Yorkshire Police who named him as a suspected paedophile before he had even been interviewed.


So should those accused of sex crimes remain anonymous until they are proven guilty?

YES - Nick Freeman, celebrity lawyer


Lawyer Nick Freeman

The Cliff Richard case perfectly illustrates why there needs to be an urgent review of the law for defendants in sex cases .

Sir Cliff was publicly named and exposed to massive media intrusion, and yet he was never charged.

There has never been a more high profile case to call for an urgent review of the law for defendant anonymity in sex cases .

The damage these allegations can cause to a person’s reputation is immense. The stigma will typically remain for a lifetime.

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I fully support the need for the anonymity of victims in sex cases as it affords them added protection and support throughout the entire judicial process and beyond.

Now the same protection should also be provided to those people accused of sexual offences.

I have been campaigning for a change in the law for many as a direct result of representing falsely accused defendants, whose lives and reputations have been ruined by such allegations.

All such matters of anonymity in sex cases should still rest with the discretion of the Judge, who may decide that naming an accused would be in the safety and interest of the public.


No - Alison Phillips, Mirror columnist

I accept it must be horrific for someone to be accused of a sexual offence like Cliff Richard has been.

But if there was anonymity for people such as him, why wouldn’t there be anonymity for murder ? Or attempted murder?

And fairly soon our whole justice system would become shrouded in secrets and mystery.

It is as vital that justice is seen to be done in this country as that it actually is done.


Cliff Richard and Gloria Hunniford

Without it we could have secret police dragging people out of their homes and putting them under arrest without ever having to tell anyone what they have done.

That may sound extreme and unlikely - but it is where the slippery slope of secrecy leads one way or another.

More importantly we as a country should continue to demonstrate that other great tenet of British justice - innocent until proven guilty.