Upskirting law welcome, but could go further, expert says

Planned new laws to criminalise upskirting are welcome but could go further, a leading academic expert has argued. The UK Government has put a new Bill before Parliament to criminalise upskirting - the act of secretly taking a photograph under a victim's skirt The Bill would criminalise taking upskirt images or videos where done for the purposes of sexual gratification, or causing distress to the victim, with a maximum prison term of two years. Professor Clare McGlynn , of Durham Law School , welcomed the proposed legislation for England and Wales. Scotland already has separate laws that make the taking and/or sharing of upskirting images illegal. But she said the proposed new legislation could go further to cover all forms of image-based sexual abuse Together with colleagues and campaigners , Professor McGlynn has long called for the introduction of a law against upskirting and more comprehensive legislation to protect victims from all image-based sexual abuse. Upskirting and voyeurism Professor McGlynn said: "I welcome the Government's announcement as the first step towards a comprehensive law covering all forms of image-based sexual abuse. "The current law is inconsistent, piecemeal and out of date.