Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if he will assess the potential merits of making changes to the [i] Marriage Act 1949 and the [ii] Sexual Offences Act 2023 in view of placing restrictions on first cousin marriages.

The Government recognises the serious concerns that have been raised on the issue of first cousin marriage. As any responsible Government would do, we must look at whether legislation is the best solution to tackle first cousin marriage or whether education and community engagement are better options.

As a matter of course, the Ministry of Justice and the Department for Health and Social Care work collaboratively on the topic of cousin marriage, including on the congenital birth defects posed to children of closely related parents.