Imagine coming home to find you've been burgled. You're shocked, upset, and you may well feel violated. Naturally you contact the police, who are sympathetic - but say they're keeping an open mind about whether a crime has actually been committed.

Sorry?

Of course, that's very unlikely to happen, whether you're reporting a burglary, a stolen car or a mugging. But it is the position now facing women (and men) who report a rape in London, following a major shift in policy by the Metropolitan Police.

In a move that will cause enormous concern among victims and organisations that support them, the force appears to have abandoned its policy of automatically believing people who report rape. Instead...