Theresa May: Police should confirm arrest names to media The police should confirm the identity of suspects who have been arrested but not charged if journalists ask them to do so, Theresa May has said. The home secretary previously said people should not be named on arrest unless it was in the "public interest." But, in an article for the Sun, Mrs May said: "Where the press has already identified the suspect... the police should confirm it." It comes after PM David Cameron said the issue had "no simple answer." Speaking during a trip to the US, he said there was a "difficult balance" between publicising arrests and respecting the privacy of suspects. His comments followed a letter written by Mrs May, and addressed to the College of Policing, which said suspects should have anonymity when they are arrested. Where the press have already identified the suspect, and asked for confirmation from police, the police should confirm it End Quote Theresa May Home secretary Her follow-up article said there were arguments in favour of withholding the identity of a suspect until they have been charged. "The case for arrest is often no more than an officer's suspicion," she wrote. But mud sticks. An arrest which turns out to be based on nothing at all can nevertheless permanently damage an individual's reputation. There is, however, also a case for making the names of those arrested public. It can also lead to further witnesses coming forward. And where the press have already identified the suspect, and asked for confirmation from police, the police should confirm it. There should be a presumption of transparency throughout the system. Tatters Mrs May's previous letter had said: "I believe that there should be a right to anonymity at arrest, but I know that there will be circumstances in which the public interest means that an arrested suspect should be named." This statement won the backing of Chris Jefferies, the retired teacher who was awarded "substantial" undisclosed libel damages in 2011 after eight newspapers wrongly linked him to the murder of Joanna Yeates. He had been arrested on suspicion of her murder, but was released without charge. Dutch national Vincent Tabak was later convicted of the crime. "Unless there are exceptional circumstances which require that somebody is named at the time of arrest, then the name of the person who has been arrested should not be given out, and the name should be released only at the point when somebody is charged," Mr Jefferies agreed. In an interview with BBC Breakfast, Mr Jefferies said his identity became known after reporters suggested possible names of suspects to police at the front desk of the station where he was being held. "My name was confirmed and as a result of that we know what happened," he said. The press became convinced that I was actually the murderer. I had to go into hiding for three months in order to escape the attentions of the press, and as far as most people in the country were aware, until the actual murderer was arrested and eventually confessed, there was still suspicion hanging over me, so my reputation was completely in tatters.