Marriage and Civil Partnership (Minimum Age) Bill

The Marriage and Civil Partnership (Minimum Age) Act 2022 is a Private Members Bill advocated for by former Conservative Home Secretary Sajid Javid.[1][2] The bill is sponsored by fellow Conservative MP Pauline Latham.[3][4]

The Act received royal assent on 28 April 2022.

Background

The proposed bill will criminalise child marriage, which is prevalent in the UK particularly in British Asian communities.[5] The age of marriage will be raised from 16 to 18.[6] Data from The Observer shows that 2,377 contacts were made about child marriage to the UK's national forced marriage helpline.[7]

The law is supported by children's charities Girls Not Brides and Barnardo's.[8]

The bill is co-sponsored by Labour MP and Chair of the International Development Select Committee Sarah Champion.[9]

Second reading of the Bill in the House of Commons took place on 19 November 2021 when it received Government and Opposition support.[10]

References
  1. Hymas, Charles (11 June 2021). "Minimum legal age for marriage to be raised to 18 as forcing 16-year-olds to wed is 'child abuse'". The Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 17 June 2021.
  2. "Marriage and Civil Partnership (Minimum Age) (No.2) Bill - Parliamentary Bills - UK Parliament". bills.parliament.uk. Retrieved 17 June 2021.
  3. "MP Pauline Latham's bid to criminalise child marriage under 18". BBC News. 7 October 2020. Retrieved 17 June 2021.
  4. Mann, Tanveer (6 September 2018). "Minimum age for marriage in UK should be raised to 18, MP says". Metro. Retrieved 17 June 2021.
  5. "'No parent who loves their child would force a 16-year-old to marry', says emotional caller". LBC. Retrieved 17 June 2021.
  6. "Under-18 marriages 'thriving' in UK and should be banned, say charities". BBC News. 4 May 2021. Retrieved 17 June 2021.
  7. "Child, Early and Forced Marriage". dx.doi.org. 5 April 2018. doi:10.14217/8dd40278-en. Retrieved 17 June 2021.
  8. "Back bill to ban marriage for under-18s in England and Wales, MPs urged". the Guardian. 6 October 2020. Retrieved 17 June 2021.
  9. "Sarah Champion and Pauline Latham: We must end child marriages in the UK". Politics Home. 25 February 2020. Retrieved 17 June 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  10. This article incorporates text published under the United Kingdom Open Parliament Licence: Barton, Cassie; Fairbairn, Catherine; Lipscombe, Sally (23 February 2022). "Commons Library analysis of Marriage and Civil Partnership (Minimum Age) Bill 2021-22". House of Commons Library. Retrieved 26 March 2022.


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