Drunk rape victims to blame, say 6pc

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) also said that 7 per cent think of people think victims are responsible when they are attacked by someone they have been flirting with heavily and 6 per cent believe victims are to blame when they are drunk.

The figures come from a breakdown of violent and sexual crime in England and Wales, which shows violent incidents have halved since 1995 to 2.1 million incidents in 2011/12.

The ONS said 1.2 million women and 800,000 men suffered domestic abuse in England and Wales in the last year, 7 per cent of women and 5 per cent of men.

Females aged 16-24 were more likely to be victims of domestic abuse, stalking and sexual assault, the survey said.

Elsewhere, the ONS said women who were separated had the highest risk of domestic abuse – one in five.