UK ban on specified strangulation and incest pornography takes effect in November

The UK government says new offences covering specified pornography will take effect in England and Wales on 6 November 2026, making it illegal to possess or publish material depicting strangulation or suffocation, certain sexual activity between relatives, or adults pretending to be children under 16. The change will affect people who keep the material as well as those who make it available to others.

What the new pornography offences cover

The BBC reported that publication could include uploading, posting or otherwise making the material available online, according to the government. Possession could include storing an image on a phone, computer or cloud service. The BBC also reported that the offences cover pornography depicting sex between step or foster relations where one person is pretending to be under 18.

Justice Minister Alex Davies-Jones said the measure was not intended to criminalise harmless sexual preferences. She argued that pornography can shape young people's understanding of healthy relationships and urged people who had the affected material to delete it and stop sharing it before the offences take effect.

Why ministers are bringing the rules into force

The measures follow recommendations in a 2025 review of pornography regulation led by Conservative peer Baroness Gabby Bertin. The BBC reported that the review found depictions of choking were widespread on popular pornography sites and warned that such material could normalise the act among young people. Bertin welcomed the commencement announcement, saying it came ‘not a moment too soon’. The review's assessment is a concern about influence, rather than proof that viewing the material causes particular behaviour.

The Evening Standard, in a report credited to the Press Association, cited a 2024 Institute for Addressing Strangulation study in which more than a third of adults aged 16 to 34 said they had been strangled or choked at least once during consensual sex. It also cited a survey by the group in which 43% of sexually active 16- and 17-year-olds said they had experienced it. Those are reported survey responses, not independently measured rates.

Non-fatal strangulation is already a criminal offence in circumstances including where a person does not consent, the two reports said. The new measures address specified pornographic depictions and their possession or publication, rather than creating that underlying offence.

Questions about removing affected material

The End Violence Against Women Coalition welcomed the ban and called for ministers to ensure it is enforced and platforms are required to remove the material, the Evening Standard reported. Durham University law professor Clare McGlynn also welcomed the laws taking effect, but raised questions about how quickly platforms and regulators would act to remove or limit access to affected material, according to the BBC.