Don't hug too often, keep embraces short and avoid face-to-face contact, is the message from No10's cautious scientific advisers ahead of the next major relaxation of Covid rules. Boris Johnson will announce England's next steps out of lockdown at a 5pm Downing Street press conference today, where he is expected to confirm that friends and can hug each other again from May 17. Professor Cath Noakes, who sits on SAGE, has urged caution ahead of the relaxation, warning that too much hugging could 'perpetuate' Covid's spread. She advised that if people are going to hug others, it should be restricted 'to very small numbers of close family who perhaps you really value a hug from' and suggested wearing masks to be safe.