Britons should keep away from the mistletoe this year, says a government minister who told the public to not kiss “people they don’t know”.

The Work and Pensions Secretary, Thérèse Coffey, has told the British public to avoid kissing strangers this year as part of an effort to be “sensible” regarding rising cases of the Chinese coronavirus.

The advice comes as the British government announces it is offering boosters to every adult in the country by January in an effort to stem the spread of the Omicron variant of COVID-19.

“For what it’s worth, I don’t think there should be much snogging under the mistletoe,” Minister Coffey replied after being asked about how cautious the public should be.

“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,” The minister continued.

In a follow-up statement posted online, Coffey asked people to watch the interview, writing “don’t kiss with people you don’t know” and adding: “Government [is] working exceptionally hard with NHS and the Jabs Army to get boosters in arms so we can all enjoy a proper Christmas knees up”.

The minister’s advice coincided with the announcement that Britain will be acquiring coronavirus vaccinations for use in 2022 and 2023, something which Health Secretary Sajid Javid said would “future proof” the British vaccine programme.

While British politicians might be advising people to stay away from kissing strangers, giving advice on physical intimacy during the pandemic has sometimes backfired on those on the public payroll.

The previous health secretary, Matt Hancock, was forced to resign after falling foul of his own social distancing guidelines last year.

Hancock, who warned against people hugging their relatives last Christmas, had to fall on his sword after being caught cheating on his wife with his aide on CCTV.

Senior government advisor and lockdown advocate Professor Neil Ferguson, too, ended up in hot water over breaching social distancing rules that he helped design by flagrantly breaking lockdown in order to meet his mistress, who did not live with him.

At one stage last year, the British government effectively banned sex between partners who were not living together as part of its lockdown restrictions.

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