Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government what representations they have made to the government of Iraq on the case for legislation that protects children, especially girls, from the harmful impacts of early marriage.

The UK is committed to protecting women and girls' rights and supports projects that strengthen women-led organisations, support survivors of conflict-related sexual violence and increase women's participation in political life.

Through our diplomatic presence, we regularly encourage the Iraqi authorities' role in safeguarding the human rights for all. Countering the rollback of and promoting the rights of women and girls is a key focus of the UK's programming and policy work in Iraq. Following successful lobbying by the UK and our international partners, the amendment to the Personal Status Law maintained the same age of marriage as the current law (18, with 15 on exception).

We urge all our partners to uphold international norms, including the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948), the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (1966), the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (1976) and the Convention on the Rights of the Child (1989).