The Government is urgently considering the possibility of new laws to tackle revenge pornography, justice minister Lord Faulks said yesterday.

Lord Faulks said uploading sexually explicit pictures and videos of an ex-partner to the internet was "cowardly and despicable".

His comments came as peers pushed for a new clause in the Criminal Justice and Courts Bill to deal with the growing problem.

The campaign for new laws on the issue has been led in the House of Commons by former culture secretary Maria Miller, who this month gained the backing of Prime Minister David Cameron in her attempt to clamp down on the abuse.

Lord Faulks said: "The Government is carefully considering what more needs to be done about this very damaging behaviour."