Comment by Amelia Handy, Head of Policy & Public Affairs at Rape Crisis England & Wales
"We welcome the new Crime and Policing Act 2026, which recognises the harm that some forms of pornography can have in shaping attitudes and behaviour. By making it a criminal offence to possess or publish pornography depicting strangulation, suffocation, incest and child sexual abuse role-play, the law acknowledges that material portraying serious sexual violence and abuse should not be treated as entertainment.
"Mainstream pornography sites are part of a vast commercial industry that uses recommendation systems and algorithms which are designed to maximise engagement and keep users watching for longer. Unlike DVD and video pornography, online content has so far gone unregulated.
"The result is that increasingly extreme and shocking content is often prioritised because it generates attention and profit. Violent, degrading and misogynistic pornography has become commonplace on mainstream platforms, with videos frequently depicting coercion, humiliation, aggression and abuse towards women.
"We mustn't forget that the average age people first see pornography is 13, very often by accident.
"Young people are particularly vulnerable to these messages because they are still developing their understanding of sex, consent and relationships. When platforms repeatedly promote videos with titles that include words like 'attack', 'kidnap', 'destroy' and 'force' they risk teaching a generation that these behaviours are normal, expected and sexually desirable.
"While we welcome the new laws coming into force, legislation alone will not be enough. Unless these laws are robustly enforced, the harms will continue. We need stronger regulation, greater public awareness of the dangers of acts such as non-fatal strangulation, and comprehensive education about consent, healthy relationships and misogyny. Violence against women and girls does not exist in a vacuum, and neither does the content that normalises it."