Georgia Harrison made history as the government announces a change in revenge porn laws following the jailing of her ex-partner Stephen Bear.
The new changes mean people who share intimate images without the consent of those depicted face jail time after activists called for a crackdown on so-called revenge porn.
Revenge pornography was criminalized in 2015, but before that prosecutors had to prove it was intended to cause humiliation or distress, but legislation passed on Tuesday will remove that clause.
Sharing intimate images without consent is now punishable by a maximum sentence of six months in prison.
Georgia Harrison made history when the government announced changes to revenge porn laws(Image: ITV/REX/Shutterstock)
TV personality Georgia Harrison, whose ex-partner Stephen Bear was jailed earlier this year for posting intimate footage of her on his OnlyFans account, was among those calling for a change in the law.
Speaking about the law changes, the former “Love Island” star, 28, emotionally said: “The reforms to the law passed today will go down in history as a turning point for generations to come and will bring peace of mind to so many victims who are reached out to me while also giving future victims the justice they deserve.
“I am so grateful to everyone who has supported me throughout this campaign and it just goes to show how great our country is that the government has responded so quickly and passed these amendments.”
At a jury trial in December, Stephen, of MTV fame Ex on the Beach, was found guilty of two counts of revenge porn and one count of voyeurism.
Stephen Bear was sentenced to 21 months in prison in March (Image: PA)
At the time of the sentencing, Georgia shared a statement outside the court telling the press and others gathered outside, “I just want to say that I am happy and relieved that this matter is finally closed.”
“This verdict is a justification for what was done to me and sends a clear signal that the police and the courts take this matter very seriously.”
“I want all other victims of this crime to know that I stand in solidarity with them and that I have absolutely no regrets for renouncing my anonymity.”
“I hope this deters anyone from committing this type of crime and I hope it brings some kind of justice to everyone else who has been the victim of it. Thank you for all your support and that’s it.”
Discussing these legislative changes, Georgia said they “will go down in history as a turning point for generations to come.”(Image: Eamonn M McCormack/Getty Images)
Legislative changes following that case were welcomed by a wide range of activists, including Refuge chief executive Ruth Davison, who hailed the changes given “appallingly low” conviction rates for intimate image abuse.
But the NSPCC, which argued that stricter measures should be included in the bill to protect women and children from harmful behavior online, said “more needs to be done”.
Rani Govender, senior online policy officer for child safety at the charity, welcomed the move to strengthen protections against abuse of intimate images, but added: “More needs to be done if online safety law restricts the creation and sharing of material.” about child sexual abuse.” which is taking place at an industrial level.
“The government should act today by filling a loophole in legislation that lets tech bosses get away with not addressing the ways their products contribute to child sexual abuse.”
