Police boss: 'Cliff's law' would be bad law

Alison Hernandez has personal experience of negative media scrutiny

Devon and Cornwall police and crime commissioner Alison Hernandez believes the balance between personal privacy and press freedom is is danger of tipping the wrong way.

In the week that the BBC has been told to pay Sir Cliff Richard damages after broadcasting live footage of his house being searched by police investigating an unfounded allegation - which led to no arrest and no charges - Ms Hernandez says that gagging orders won't help justice to be achieved.

She's told Radio Exe that publicity is often vital in encouraging victims to speak out.

After the 2015 general election, she herself was subject to a police investigation when she was the electoral agent for Torbay's parliamentary candidate and subsequently the area's MP Kevin Foster.  She says: "I appreciate the challenge that Sir Cliff has had in this experience but I would go through it all again, because I know that we get a lot of victims who come forward once they hear of names that are under suspicion and that is a really positive thing because we it can secure convictions of people who we do not want in our community and who we want behind bars."

Like Sir Cliff, Ms Hernandez was throughly vindicated.