The Pretenders frontwoman sparked a storm in August (15) when she suggested ladies who dress in short skirts and high heels are "enticing" men to assault them.

Hynde revealed she takes "responsibility" for becoming the victim of a sexual assault when she was young and "naive", adding, "If you play with fire you get burnt. It's not any secret, is it?"

Her remarks drew criticism from anti-crime campaigners and now veteran singer Stewart has waded into the row, insisting Hynde was wrong to suggest women can 'provoke' men into rape by the way they dress.

He tells British magazine Event, "I think a woman should be able to do and wear what she wants without feeling that she's going to be attacked. I don't go along with that saying, 'She was asking for it.' Not at all."