The UK government has announced that pornography depicting strangulation and incestuous relationships will be banned starting from 6 November. This decision follows cross-party pressure and recommendations from a review into pornography regulation conducted in 2025.
New Legislation
The new legislation will make it illegal to show online pornography that includes:
- Strangulation or suffocation
- Sexual acts between related individuals or those pretending to be related
- Depictions of individuals pretending to be children under the age of 16
Justice Minister Alex Davies-Jones emphasized that the law aims to protect young people from harmful portrayals of relationships, stating, > "This isn’t about criminalising harmless sexual preferences. But porn can shape what people think a healthy relationship looks like, especially young people. Content that normalises, or even glorifies, violence against women is dangerous and can blur the line with what is acceptable in real life."
Background of the Review
The recommendations for this ban were made by Conservative peer Gabby Bertin in her review, which highlighted the devastating real-world consequences of pornography that shows women being choked. The report pointed out the lack of government scrutiny over the pornography industry and identified disturbing role-play scenarios that would also be banned.
