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1683167

registered interest
date	17/01/2024
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Marriage
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether the Government is taking steps to raise awareness of the legal distinctions between (a) marriage, (b) civil partnership and (c) cohabiting.
tabling member constituency	Chesham and Amersham
tabling member printed	Sarah Green
uin	10324
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 24/01/2024 answer text <p>It is important that people are aware of the legal distinctions between getting married, forming a civil partnership and living together as cohabitants. The Government has already taken steps in this area. The Department for Education’s statutory guidance on relationships education includes the need for schools to ensure that pupils are aware of what marriage is, including its legal status and the legal status of other types of long-term relationship. The Government is also reviewing the information currently available to the public on the legal rights afforded to spouses, civil partners, and cohabiting couples.</p><p>The Government considers that existing work underway on the law of marriage and divorce, which are directly relevant to issues concerning cohabitants, must conclude before considering any change to the law in respect of the rights of cohabitants on relationship breakdown.</p> answering member constituency Finchley and Golders Green answering member printed Mike Freer grouped question UIN 10325 question first answered 24/01/2024 08:28:39 answering member 4004 label Biography information for Mike Freer
tabling member	4918 label Biography information for Sarah Green

1679531

registered interest
date	05/01/2024
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Marriage
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to the Answer of 14 September 2023 to Question 198188, whether his Department has made a further assessment of the implications for his policies of the Law Commission report entitled Celebrating Marriage: A New Weddings Law, published in July 2022; and when his Department plans to publish a response to that report.
tabling member constituency	Hampstead and Kilburn
tabling member printed	Tulip Siddiq
uin	8057
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 15/01/2024 answer text <p>The Government is still carefully considering the Law Commission’s 57 recommendations for weddings reform and will publish a response in due course.</p> answering member constituency Finchley and Golders Green answering member printed Mike Freer question first answered 15/01/2024 14:31:01 answering member 4004 label Biography information for Mike Freer
tabling member	4518 label Biography information for Tulip Siddiq

1672748

registered interest
date	23/11/2023
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Marriage
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what his Department's timetable is for publishing an interim response to the report published by the Law Commission entitled Celebrating Marriage: A New Weddings Law.
tabling member constituency	St Ives
tabling member printed	Derek Thomas
uin	3526
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 30/11/2023 answer text <p>Marriage will always be one of our most important institutions, and the Government has a duty to consider the implications of any changes to the law in this area very carefully.</p><p> </p><p>The Government is considering the Law Commissions’ 57 recommendations for legislative reform and a response will be published in due course.</p> answering member constituency Finchley and Golders Green answering member printed Mike Freer question first answered 30/11/2023 17:21:43 answering member 4004 label Biography information for Mike Freer
tabling member	4532 label Biography information for Derek Thomas

1658722

registered interest
date	06/09/2023
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Marriage
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether his Department plans to implement the recommendations in the Law Commission report entitled Celebrating Marriage: A New Weddings Law, published in July 2022.
tabling member constituency	Hampstead and Kilburn
tabling member printed	Tulip Siddiq
uin	198188
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 14/09/2023 answer text <p>Marriage will always be one of our most important institutions, and the Government has a duty to consider the implications of any changes to the law in this area very carefully.</p><p>The Government is considering the Law Commissions’ 57 recommendations for legislative reform and a response will be published in due course.</p> answering member constituency Finchley and Golders Green answering member printed Mike Freer question first answered 14/09/2023 16:16:43 answering member 4004 label Biography information for Mike Freer
tabling member	4518 label Biography information for Tulip Siddiq

1654950

registered interest
date	20/07/2023
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Marriage
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the urgency of the need for marriage law reform, with particular reference to protection and prevention for women whose religious marriage ceremonies do not comply with legal requirements and may not be legally recognised.
tabling member printed	Baroness Cox
uin	HL9547
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 02/08/2023 answer text <p>The Government shares the concern that some people, and disproportionately women, may have a religious wedding that is not legally binding, and does not provide legal protections, without appreciating the consequences.</p><p>We are carefully considering the Law Commission’s recommendations on weddings reform. As part of its review, the Law Commission has considered ways of ensuring there are fewer religious wedding ceremonies that result in a marriage which the law does not recognise.</p><p>Marriage will always be one of our most important institutions, and we have a duty to consider the implications of any changes to the law in this area very carefully. We are now taking the time to consider the report’s recommendations and will publish a response shortly.</p> answering member printed Lord Bellamy grouped question UIN HL9550 question first answered 02/08/2023 14:03:48 answering member 4941 label Biography information for Lord Bellamy
tabling member	3364 label Biography information for Baroness Cox

1503874

registered interest
date	02/09/2022
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Marriage
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of the Law Commission’s recommendations to reform wedding laws in England and Wales.
tabling member constituency	Richmond Park
tabling member printed	Sarah Olney
uin	45505
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 07/09/2022 answer text <p>In July 2019, the Government invited the Law Commission to undertake a wholesale review on weddings law in England and Wales. The Law Commission report was published on 19 July 2022 and contains 57 recommendations for wholesale legislative reform.</p><p>We must now take the time to consider the report recommendations fully. As has been set out in Parliament, marriage will always be one of our most important institutions, and we have a duty to consider the implications of any changes to the law in this area very carefully. We will publish a response to the report in due course.</p> answering member constituency Derbyshire Dales answering member printed Miss Sarah Dines question first answered 07/09/2022 15:08:32 answering member 4816 label Biography information for Miss Sarah Dines
tabling member	4591 label Biography information for Sarah Olney

1468088

registered interest
date	07/06/2022
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Marriage
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, when the Law Commission will publish its findings on marriage laws in England and Wales.
tabling member constituency	Hendon
tabling member printed	Dr Matthew Offord
uin	13697
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 14/06/2022 answer text <p>The Law Commission’s review on weddings will explore options for wholesale reform to the law governing marriage ceremonies. The report is due to be published with recommendations for the Government in July 2022.</p> answering member constituency Corby answering member printed Tom Pursglove question first answered 14/06/2022 14:11:06 answering member 4369 label Biography information for Tom Pursglove
tabling member	4006 label Biography information for Dr Matthew Offord

1401656

registered interest
date	10/01/2022
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Marriage
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Integrated Communities Strategy Green Paper published on 14 March 2018, whether they can provide an update on their progress in exploring "the legal and practical challenges of limited reform relating to the law on marriage and religious weddings."
tabling member printed	Baroness Cox
uin	HL5231
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 24/01/2022 answer text <p>This is a difficult issue which requires careful consideration. The Law Commission are looking at aspects of the problem through their review of the law governing legal marriage ceremonies. This review will present options for reforms to modernise marriage law, including in relation to who can solemnise a marriage and ways of ensuring that fewer weddings conducted according to religious rites result in a marriage that the law does not recognise at all. The Government will consider the case for more comprehensive and enduring reform to marriage law once the Law Commission’s recommendations have been received.</p><p> </p><p>A separate Nuffield Foundation study, launched in September 2020 and due to report shortly, is investigating why marriage ceremonies occur outside of the legal framework for weddings in England and Wales, and the findings of this report will also be carefully considered. Any proposals affecting how religious groups are permitted to conduct marriages must be thoroughly assessed for their fairness.</p><p> </p> answering member printed Lord Wolfson of Tredegar question first answered 24/01/2022 16:31:12 answering member 4901 label Biography information for Lord Wolfson of Tredegar
tabling member	3364 label Biography information for Baroness Cox

1362225

registered interest
date	21/10/2021
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Marriage
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether he has plans to bring forward legislative proposals to enable wedding celebrants to perform legally recognised marriages.
tabling member constituency	Weaver Vale
tabling member printed	Mike Amesbury
uin	60506
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 29/10/2021 answer text <p>The Government announced in June 2019 that the Law Commission would conduct a fundamental review of the law on how and where people can legally marry in England and Wales. As part of this review, the Law Commission will make recommendations regarding how provision could be made for the use of independent celebrants. The Government will consider the Law Commission’s recommendations carefully when received. It is right for us to await these recommendations.</p> answering member constituency Corby answering member printed Tom Pursglove question first answered 29/10/2021 16:34:15 answering member 4369 label Biography information for Tom Pursglove
tabling member	4667 label Biography information for Mike Amesbury

1349056

registered interest
date	21/07/2021
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Marriage
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if he will publish a list of all (a) substantial and (b) minor reforms his Department has made to marriage law since the Marriage (Same-Sex Couples) Act 2013.
tabling member constituency	Wallasey
tabling member printed	Dame Angela Eagle
uin	37365
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 10/09/2021 answer text <p>The Ministry of Justice is responsible for marriage law in England and Wales. Marriage law in Scotland and Northern Ireland is a devolved matter.</p><p>The Government has received a number of representations about making separate provision for humanist marriage in England and Wales. As we have made clear, a Law Commission report due later this year is expected to present options for wholesale reform to the law governing marriage ceremonies, which the Government will consider carefully. Options being explored by the Law Commission include offering couples greater flexibility to form their own ceremonies, allowing the ceremony to take place in a much broader range of locations and to provide a framework that could allow non-religious belief organisations (such as Humanists) and/or independent celebrants to conduct legally binding weddings.</p><p>The Government will decide on provision for non-religious belief marriage on the basis of the Law Commission's recommendations.</p><p>Since 2013, the main reform related to marriage has been the recent amendment to the Marriages and Civil Partnerships (Approved Premises) Regulations 2005. This follows a commitment made in 2019 to accelerate plans to allow civil weddings and civil partnerships to be held outside through secondary legislation. The change took effect on 1 July and will gives more options to couples and the sector in terms of how civil weddings and civil partnerships are celebrated by allowing all aspects of the ceremony to take place outdoors, within the boundary of the land of which the built premises form part. The proposed location for the outdoor proceedings must be assessed to be seemly and dignified.</p><p>This change will provide greater flexibility especially during the pandemic when there are important public health considerations to take into account. This is not radical reform and ultimately it does not change the current law’s focus on premises.</p><p>These are time-limited amendments to the regulations which came into force on 1 July 2021 and will expire at the end of 5th April 2022. A consultation will be undertaken in the Autumn of 2021 to consider the practical impacts of this policy in detail and to enable a later amending Statutory Instrument which is not time limited. A full equality impact assessment will be undertaken on completion of the consultation and will be published in due course.</p><p>Amending the 2005 Regulations will benefit many thousands of couples who seek a civil marriage or civil partnership formation on approved premises. The power to make provision in regulations for approved premises is set out in statute and extends only to civil marriage and civil partnership formation.</p> answering member constituency Cheltenham answering member printed Alex Chalk grouped question UIN 37364 question first answered 10/09/2021 13:53:18 answering member 4481 label Biography information for Alex Chalk
tabling member	491 label Biography information for Dame Angela Eagle