Hugging friends and family will be allowed from May 17, Michael Gove declared today. The Cabinet Office minister said 'friendly contact' between people in different households is set to return when the latest stage of the roadmap is reached in a week's time. Boris Johnson is set to confirm the relaxation at a Downing Street press conference tomorrow, after the vaccine rolllout and plunging infections led to huge pressure from Tory MPs to speed up his plans. The major step will be a huge relief to grandparents, most of whom have been unable to hug grandchildren for more than a year.