Marriage between first cousins could be banned in the UK under a new proposal set to be tabled in Parliament.
Current law under the Marriage Act 1949 and the Sexual Offences Act 2003, bans marriage and sexual activity between siblings, parents, and children but allows both between first cousins.
Conservative former minister Richard Holden said such marriages have been linked to higher rates of birth defects and can also “reinforce negative structures and control women”.
The MP for Basildon and Billericay will seek to introduce the Marriage (Prohibited Degrees of Relationship) Bill to the House of Commons on Tuesday for further consideration.
Holden said first-cousin marriages raise “serious concerns” worldwide, adding, “people already think it is illegal and then are surprised when you mention it isn’t”.
Justice Minister Alex Davies-Jones, responding to the proposed restriction on first-cousin marriages, said the Government will take time to “properly consider our marriage law” before taking a public stance on the issue.
Holden said cousin marriages can be “cultural rather than religious” in “some of the communities where it is more prevalent”.
“Marriage and relationships should be about individual choice in modern Britain, it shouldn’t be about anything else,” he added.
“Many nations and states have taken action on this issue in recent years and it is time for us to do the same.”
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