Minister warns Brits to avoid ‘snogging strangers under the mistletoe’ this Christmas

The British public has been issued a stern warning about ‘snogging strangers under the mistletoe’ this Christmas.

Work and Pensions Secretary Therese Coffey was asked by ITV’s Robert Peston on whether the public should limit socialising over the next few weeks, to which she said the government was working hard so we can all enjoy a ‘knees-up’.

Coffey then stressed that, while people should still enjoy Christmas, she doesn’t think ‘there should be much snogging under the mistletoe.’

@clementbb / Unsplash

She said on the mischievous tradition: “[We] don’t need to do things like that, but I think we should all be trying to enjoy the Christmas ahead of us and that’s why we’re working so hard to get the deployment of as many vaccines as possible.

“And, of course continuing to encourage people who haven’t been vaccinated at all yet, to come forward, recognising that we’re still trying to understand the impact of Omicron.

“That’s why we’ve got our top scientists working on it. But what we do know is that vaccines will help protect against impacts and that’s why we’ve pre-ordered the antiviral medical treatments as well.”

After her comment went viral, Coffey quickly took to social media to clear up any confusion, writing: “Don’t kiss with people you don’t know… Government working exceptionally hard with NHS and the Jabs Army to get boosters in arms so we can all enjoy a proper Christmas knees-up.”

This comes just days after the government made the use of face masks mandatory once again in all shops and on public transport.

The regulations were reintroduced on Tuesday as part of the government’s response to the new Omicron variant, which is said to be ‘more transmissible and have more mutations which could weaken the effect of vaccines and natural immunity.’ 

A statement from the Government said: “From 4am Tuesday November 30th, face coverings will be compulsory in shops and other settings such as banks, post offices and hairdressers, as well as on public transport unless individuals are exempt from doing so.”