Carla Bruni believes the fashion industry is "not so dangerous" for women.

Carla Bruni

Carla Bruni

The 49-year-old model has acknowledged there are "dreadful people" in the fashion and beauty business as there is "everywhere else", but she believes the difference is that people "don't want to abuse" models.

Speaking to InStyle Online in the wake of sexual harassment allegations made against Harvey Weinstein, the catwalk icon said: "Of course, you have dreadful people in fashion like everywhere else but fashion is not so dangerous for young girls.

"There's a lot of work, there's a lot of travelling, and you need to have a lot of discipline. I would say that it's one of the places in show business that is safe.

"People don't want to abuse girls - they want to photograph them. It's a healthy environment."

And the style muse - who recently returned to the runway alongside fellow supermodels Naomi Campbell, Claudia Schiffer and Cindy Crawford for Versace's latest catwalk show - has admitted she has "never" been sexually harassed by a "photographer or designer" during her 30 years at the helm of the fashion industry.

The former First Lady of France continued: "That doesn't happen in fashion

"I never had a photographer or designer do that, never ever."

"Most agents are protecting girls because they have to work. And there are a lot of women in fashion - women rarely go into that kind of abuse. That keeps it safe for young models."

Carla's comments come in the wake of the sexual harassment claims made against the 65-year-old disgraced film producer, who has been accused of sexually assaulting a number of women over a 30 year period including Cara Delevingne, Rose McGowan, Ashley Judd, Gwyneth Paltrow and Kate Beckinsale.

However, fellow supermodel Christy Turlington disagrees with Carla's comments as she has previously claimed the fashion industry is rife with sexual misconduct.

Speaking previously, the 48-year-old icon said: "I can say that harassment and mistreatment have always been widely known and tolerated in the industry. The industry is surrounded by predators who thrive on the constant rejection and loneliness so many of us have experienced at some point in our careers. I feel fortunate that I did not personally experience anything traumatic, but also know that is not the norm."

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