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Limits could be put on the length of time a suspect is allowed to be held on bail in England and Wales, the home secretary has indicated.
Theresa May has asked the College of Policing to consider implementing a time limit.
This follows the cases of Paul Gambaccini, Jim Davidson and Freddie Starr - all were on bail for months before learning they faced no action.
Bail should not exceed 28 days, unless exceptional circumstances apply.
Mrs May wants to prevent people having to wait months or years before learning they will not be prosecuted, the BBC's home affairs correspondent Danny Shaw said.
'Transparency and rigour'
In the case of Freddie Starr, the comedian was on bail for 18 months before being told he would face no further action over allegations of sexual offences.
BBC broadcaster Paul Gambaccini was on bail for a year before the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) concluded that he would not face action over alleged historical sex offences.
Mr Gambaccini said he had suffered "12 months of trauma".
Comedian Jim Davidson was on bail for eight months before being told he would not face charges over alleged sex offences in the UK.
Mrs May will address the issue in a speech at the College of Policing annual conference on Wednesday.
She is expected to say: "I am pleased that the college is developing evidence-based guidance to bring consistency, transparency and rigour to the way in which pre-charge bail is used in criminal investigations.
"We must also look at statutory time limits on the use of pre-charge bail to prevent people spending months or even years on bail only for no charges to be brought."
In 2013 BBC research found that 3,000 people had been on bail for more than six months.
'Sensitive professions'
Human rights group Liberty has called for a six-month statutory limit on pre-charge bail, describing it as the only effective way of ensuring "justice for victims and suspects".
Vera Baird, Police and Crime Commissioner for Northumbria and former Solicitor General for England and Wales, said a six-month time limit was "fairly reasonable".
She said there was currently a "massive variation" between police forces in how long people were kept on bail, and bail conditions such as curfews and who suspects can associate with can "go on endlessly".
"There is nothing though to stop the police from releasing people without bail, just to come back in due course, or indeed to delay arresting in some cases," she said.
Also at Wednesday's conference Mrs May is expected to discuss the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act (Ripa) which has been used by police to access journalists' phone records without a judge's approval.
Mrs May is due to say: "I am already aware that there have been concerns over the use of Ripa to access journalists' phone records and that is why we are revising the relevant code to make clear that specific consideration must be given to communications data requests involving those in sensitive professions, such as journalists."
Theresa May has asked the College of Policing to consider implementing a time limit.
This follows the cases of Paul Gambaccini, Jim Davidson and Freddie Starr - all were on bail for months before learning they faced no action.
Bail should not exceed 28 days, unless exceptional circumstances apply.
Mrs May wants to prevent people having to wait months or years before learning they will not be prosecuted, the BBC's home affairs correspondent Danny Shaw said.
'Transparency and rigour'
In the case of Freddie Starr, the comedian was on bail for 18 months before being told he would face no further action over allegations of sexual offences.
BBC broadcaster Paul Gambaccini was on bail for a year before the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) concluded that he would not face action over alleged historical sex offences.
Mr Gambaccini said he had suffered "12 months of trauma".
Comedian Jim Davidson was on bail for eight months before being told he would not face charges over alleged sex offences in the UK.
Mrs May will address the issue in a speech at the College of Policing annual conference on Wednesday.
She is expected to say: "I am pleased that the college is developing evidence-based guidance to bring consistency, transparency and rigour to the way in which pre-charge bail is used in criminal investigations.
"We must also look at statutory time limits on the use of pre-charge bail to prevent people spending months or even years on bail only for no charges to be brought."
In 2013 BBC research found that 3,000 people had been on bail for more than six months.
'Sensitive professions'
Human rights group Liberty has called for a six-month statutory limit on pre-charge bail, describing it as the only effective way of ensuring "justice for victims and suspects".
Vera Baird, Police and Crime Commissioner for Northumbria and former Solicitor General for England and Wales, said a six-month time limit was "fairly reasonable".
She said there was currently a "massive variation" between police forces in how long people were kept on bail, and bail conditions such as curfews and who suspects can associate with can "go on endlessly".
"There is nothing though to stop the police from releasing people without bail, just to come back in due course, or indeed to delay arresting in some cases," she said.
Also at Wednesday's conference Mrs May is expected to discuss the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act (Ripa) which has been used by police to access journalists' phone records without a judge's approval.
Mrs May is due to say: "I am already aware that there have been concerns over the use of Ripa to access journalists' phone records and that is why we are revising the relevant code to make clear that specific consideration must be given to communications data requests involving those in sensitive professions, such as journalists."
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