The Government will study proposals for reform to wedding law. (Image: PA Photo/iStock)
First cousins should be banned from marrying to lower the risk of birth defects and stop women being controlled against their will, former Conservative party chairman Richard Holden will tell Parliament this week.
The Government says this is an “important issue” and has pledged to examine the nation’s marriage laws before setting out its position.
Mr Holden will propose changes to the law on Tuesday in the latest bid to stop close cousins from marrying.
Norway this year banned marriages between close relatives with the goal of “goal of preventing forced marriages and negative social control”.
The US state of Tennessee has also banned cousin marriage, and Sweden and Denmark are expected to clamp down on the practice.
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Mr Holden – who took a prominent role in successful campaigns to ban “virginity testing” and a surgical procedure so women appear to be virgins. said: “First cousin marriage raises serious concerns both in the UK and globally. Studies show that it is associated with approximately double the rate of birth defects compared to the general population and can reinforce negative structures and control women.
“Building on my previous work to ban hymenoplasty and so-called virginity testing in the last Parliament, I will urge the Government to reconsider the legality of first-cousin marriage in the UK. Many nations and states have taken action on this issue in recent years and it is time for us to do the same.”
Patrick Nash, a legal academic and director of the Pharos Foundation, said a ban on cousin marriages would be a “sensible and proportionate measure” to address public health concerns and tackle “honour violence associated with blood-related clans”.
He said this has “nothing to do with race or religion, and many countries around the world already have such laws,” adding: “It is high time the United Kingdom joined them, and I hope the Government has the courage to act decisively.”
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But Sarah Norcross, director of the Progress Educational Trust (PET), said: “Parliament should not be considering banning first cousin marriage. Some people argue that there should be a ban because they are worried about the health of the children born from such marriages.
“Children who are born to parents who are first cousins are at a higher risk of certain genetic conditions than people whose parents have no (known) genetic relationship. However, most children born to first cousins will be healthy.
“There are tried and tested ways to reduce the risks of genetic conditions to children of first cousins; the first step is to encourage couples who are first cousins to get medical advice. This might involve premarital carrier testing and genetic counselling. Therefore, there is no need to introduce such a ban health grounds.’
A Ministry of Justice spokesperson said: “The new Government will consider existing marriage law, including the Law Commission’s 2022 wedding report, before publicly setting out a position on this important issue.”