The United Kingdom government has announced that online pornography depicting strangulation, suffocation, incestuous sexual activity and adults pretending to be children under 16 will become illegal in England and Wales from November 6.
The new offences will criminalise the possession and publication of the specified material, following a review of pornography regulation in 2025 that found depictions of choking were widespread on popular pornographic websites.
Baroness Gabby Bertin, a Conservative peer who led the review, welcomed the move, describing it as long overdue.
She told the Press Association that the change would send a clear message to companies hosting and distributing pornography, as well as society, that extreme and violent content linked to real-life harm was unacceptable.
The independent review, commissioned by the government of former Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, cited concerns about the influence of violent pornography on young people. It included an account of a 14-year-old boy asking a teacher how to choke girls during sex.
The report warned that imitating such behaviour could have devastating consequences.
Speaking on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme on Friday, Bertin said pornography depicting strangulation had helped normalise sexual violence.
“That has to come to an end, and I hope this law change will be the beginning of that,” she said.
Non-fatal strangulation is already a criminal offence in the UK when carried out without consent. However, the depiction of such acts in online pornography has not previously been illegal under the specific provisions being introduced.
Amendments to the Crime and Policing Bill, which became law in April, established the new offences covering the specified content.
Justice Minister Alex Davies-Jones said the measures were not intended to criminalise harmless sexual preferences but to address material that could distort people’s understanding of healthy relationships, particularly among young people.
She warned that pornography which normalises or glorifies violence against women could blur the distinction between acceptable online content and behaviour in real life.
“If you’ve got this material, delete it. If you’re sharing it, stop,” Davies-Jones said, warning that possession and distribution would become criminal offences from November 6.
Under the new rules, publishing the prohibited material could attract a maximum prison sentence of five years. Publication could include uploading, posting or otherwise making the content available online.
Possession offences will carry different penalties depending on the material involved.
People possessing images depicting adults pretending to be under 16 during sexual activity could face up to three years in prison.
Possession of images depicting strangulation, suffocation or penetrative sexual activity between specified relatives could attract a sentence of up to two years.
The provisions will also cover sexual content involving step-relatives or foster-relations where one person is pretending to be under 18.
Experts welcome changes but question enforcement
Clare McGlynn, a law professor at Durham University who has previously warned that widely available extreme pornography can normalise sexual violence, welcomed the new rules.
She described their implementation as a potential turning point in efforts to challenge the normalisation of sexually violent material.
However, McGlynn questioned how quickly technology companies and regulators would act to remove prohibited content and prevent its spread.
She said the objective should extend beyond prosecuting individuals to transforming the online pornography landscape, adding that platforms and regulators would have a crucial role in enforcing the law.
The new offences are intended to strengthen the UK’s response to extreme online pornography and address concerns about its potential influence on attitudes towards sexual violence and relationships.
