From 6 November 2026, possessing or publishing pornography showing strangulation or suffocation, sex between relatives, or adults role-playing as under-16s becomes illegal in England and Wales.
Baroness Gabby Bertin's review, published in February 2025 and commissioned by Rishi Sunak's government, found choking was widespread on popular porn sites.
The Institute for Addressing Strangulation reported in 2024 that more than a third of 16 to 34-year-old adults had been choked at least once during consensual sex, and 43% of sexually active 16 and 17-year-olds said they had been subjected to it in a 2025 survey.
Non-fatal strangulation is already an offence without consent, but showing it online was not illegal until amendments to the Crime and Policing Bill, which became law in April 2026, targeted such content.
London
London · United Kingdom
How it came to this
February 2025Bertin review on pornography regulation is published
April 2026Amendments to the Crime and Policing Bill become law
October 2026Government announces the new offences
6 NovBan on possession and publication takes effect
A new offence from 6 November
The government has announced that from 6 November 2026 it will be a criminal offence to possess or publish pornography showing strangulation or suffocation. The same ban covers sexual content depicting people who are related, or who pretend to be related, and adults role-playing as children under 16. Ministers first announced the laws earlier this year after cross-party pressure over their effect on women and girls. Ministers tied the rules to a pledge to halve violence against women and girls within ten years. Justice minister Alex Davies-Jones said the measure is not aimed at harmless sexual preferences, but at material that can distort ideas about healthy relationships, particularly among young people.
Origins in a 2025 review
The announcement is the latest step in a process that began with a review led by Conservative peer Baroness Gabby Bertin. Her report, published in February 2025, was commissioned by the government of former Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and found that choking was widespread on popular porn sites. It also described a 'total absence of government scrutiny' of the industry and highlighted role-play involving incest and adults portraying children. One account it cited involved a 14-year-old boy who asked a teacher how to choke girls during sex. Bertin welcomed the change.
“It is very good news these offences will come into force, and not a moment too soon.”
A 2024 study by the Institute for Addressing Strangulation found that more than a third of 16 to 34-year-old adults had been strangled or choked at least once during consensual sex. A survey by the same group in 2025 found that 43% of sexually active 16 and 17-year-olds said they had been subjected to it. Non-fatal strangulation is already a criminal offence when a person does not consent, yet showing it online was not illegal. Amendments to the Crime and Policing Bill, which became law in April 2026, sought to capture such content and make it criminal in England and Wales. The new offence applies to possession as well as publication, so private holdings of the material are covered too.
Enforcement and what comes next
From 6 November, possession or publication of the covered material becomes a criminal matter. Davies-Jones framed the change as a warning to people who already hold such material, and said the content is not as harmless as people may think. She told viewers to remove what they hold and stop sharing it.
“If you've got this material, delete it. If you're sharing it, stop.”
Bertin has argued that the law should be backed by better enforcement and stronger regulation, so that companies hosting porn and wider society both see extreme and violent content as unacceptable. The offences take effect on 6 November 2026.
UK bans porn showing strangulation and incest from 6 November 2026
Possessing or publishing pornography that shows strangulation, suffocation, sex between relatives or adults role-playing as under-16s becomes a criminal offence on 6 November 2026.
AI text based on reports by LBC, BBC and The Independent. Published .