Hooking up is no longer illegal, as long as you’re in an official relationship

Pour one out for fuck boys across the country


Couples that don’t live together but are official are now allowed to have sex in England – but casual sex is still banned.

Back in June, the government banned two people from two separate households meeting up in a private place, meaning it was illegal if you have sex with someone not from your household. But now government guidelines have been “quietly updated” to reverse this ban, the Metro reports.

People who don’t live together need to socially distance when they meet up, unless in a limited number of exceptions – including being in an “established relationship”. The guidance doesn’t clarify what “established” exactly means.

This news comes just in time for coving season – the chaos of trying to find a lockdown boyfriend, combined with cuffing season that rolls around every winter. I can almost hear the sounds of Tinder being frantically re-downloaded up and down the country. Fuck boys everywhere are panicking, trying to weigh up whether being able to have sex is worth going official.

Apparently six in 10 people in Britain went without any sexual activity during lockdown, so it’s safe to say we all need it.

If you’ve formed a support bubble, you also don’t need to socially distance from members of your bubble.  Different parts of the UK, and different areas under local lockdowns, may have different rules about who you need to distance from.

According to the Metro, Manchester’s local lockdown laws allow couples who live apart to meet at hotels, although they’re not allowed to have sex in their own homes.

At least now we have more options than shitting where you eat, or having to shag one of your coursemates.

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• I went official with my boyfriend in lockdown before we had even met