Loose Women sparks outrage with online rape poll

Loose Women has sparked outrage on social media after debating whether a victim can ever be blamed for being raped. The ITV daytime chat show invited viewers to vote in an online poll asking: 'is it ever a woman's fault if she is raped?'

Victim support groups said they were "horrified" that the broadcaster would even consider asking such a "highly dangerous, victim-blaming" question.

The poll was prompted by controversial comments by musician Chrissie Hynde. The 63-year old Pretenders star said she "took full responsibility" for being sexually assaulted by a biker gang when she was 21. "If you play with fire, you get burnt," she said in an interview with the Sunday Times. "It's not any secret, is it?"

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She added that women who dress provocatively are to blame if they get attacked. "If I'm walking around in my underwear and I'm drunk? Who else’s fault can it be?" she asked. "If you don’t want to entice a rapist, don't wear high heels so you can’t run from him."

Hynde faced an immediate backlash from women's groups who accused her of perpetuating dangerous myths. "Victims of sexual violence should never feel or be made to feel that they were responsible for the appalling crime they suffered – regardless of circumstances or factors which may have made them particularly vulnerable," Lucy Hasting from Victim Support told The Guardian.

During today's Loose Women show, panellists Ruth Langsford, June Sarpong, Nadia Sawalha and Janet Street-Porter debated whether a woman could be blamed for an attack.

Janet Street-Porter argued that everything shouldn't be so "black and white" and that people should be allowed to express their opinion that "if a woman is drunk, and is wearing highly provocative clothes, she is placing herself at risk".

This isn't the first time Loose Women has caused offence while discussing the issue of rape. Last year panellist Judy Finnegan defended convicted rapist Ched Evans and said the assault against his 19-year old victim had been "non-violent".