Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of legally recognising humanist marriages.

Answered by Mike Freer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)

In July 2019 we invited the Law Commission to undertake a wholesale review on weddings law in England and Wales. As part of that review, the Government invited the Law Commission to make recommendations about how marriage by humanist and other non-religious belief organisations could be incorporated into a revised or new scheme for all marriages that is simple, fair and consistent.

The Law Commission report was published in July 2022 and contains 57 recommendations for extensive legislative reform. The Government is carefully considering these recommendations, and a response will be published in due course.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of whether the announcement on marriage reform by the Northern Ireland Department of Finance on 1 July affects legal recognition for humanist marriages in England and Wales.

Answered by Lord Bellamy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)

Since marriage is a devolved matter, any decisions regarding humanist marriages in Northern Ireland will not impact marriage laws in England and Wales.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Law Commission report Celebrating Marriage: A New Weddings Law, published 19 July, what plans, if any, they have to grant legal recognition to humanist marriages; and on what timescale they plan to grant such recognition.

Answered by Lord Bellamy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)

The Law Commission report contains 57 recommendations for legislative reform.

We must now take the time to consider the Law Commission’s 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, including balancing the needs and interests of all groups. We will publish a response to the report in due course.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the Law Commission review Celebrating Marriage: A New Weddings Law, published on 19 July, which has called for legal recognition for humanist marriages.

Answered by Lord Bellamy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)

The Law Commission report published on 19 July 2022 did not consider the question of whether non-religious belief organisations, including Humanists, should be able to conduct legally binding weddings. The report contains 57 recommendations for legislative reform .

We must now take the time to consider the Law Commission’s 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, including balancing the needs and interests of all groups. We will publish a response to the report in due course

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they will give humanist marriages legal recognition by laying an Order under the Marriage Act 2013; and if so, whether they will consider doing so on an interim basis pending further reform of marriage law.

Answered by Lord Bellamy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)

In July 2019, the Government invited the Law Commission to undertake a review of weddings law in England and Wales. The Law Commission report was published on 19 July 2022 and contains 57 recommendations for legislative reform.

To lay an order on an interim basis does not allow the necessary time to consider the Law Commission’s recommendations in full. 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, including balancing the needs and interests of all groups. We will publish a response to the report in due course.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to the Answers of 15 February 2022 to Questions 119629 and 119630, what recent discussions he has had with the Northern Ireland Administration on the potential impact of clauses 3(2) and 3(3)(a) of the Bill of Rights Bill on the legal recognition of humanist marriages in Northern Ireland.

Answered by Sarah Dines

As is the case whenever a new government is formed, we are now looking again at the Bill of Rights to ensure that it meets the government’s objectives.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the risk of introducing inconsistencies into the law around marriage if humanist marriages are legislated for before the Law Commission's review in this area has concluded.

Answered by Lord Wolfson of Tredegar

In 2014, the Government published a consultation paper and response assessing the potential merits of provision for non-religious belief marriages. This concluded that the matter was complex, and that by allowing Humanists to solemnise marriages in unrestricted locations, the Government would create a provision for Humanists that would not be available to all groups.

To ensure we are considering the implications of changing the law on marriage on all groups, we invited the Law Commission to undertake a review which is currently underway and is expected to report in July of this year. By looking at the law comprehensively, the Law Commission will seek to put forward proposals that would ensure that, insofar as possible, groups and couples are all subject to the same rules and the same level of regulation. That reform is not possible by only authorising Humanist weddings, even on a temporary basis pending the Law Commission report.

The Government will carefully consider the Law Commission’s recommendations when the final report is published in July, and it is right for us to wait for the outcome of the report before amending marriage law any further.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to extend legal recognition to humanist weddings; and why they did not do so at the same time as extending legal recognition to outdoor weddings.

Answered by Lord Wolfson of Tredegar

In 2014, the Government published a consultation paper and response assessing the potential merits of provision for non-religious belief marriages. This concluded that the matter was complex, and that by allowing Humanists to solemnise marriages in unrestricted locations, the Government would create a provision for Humanists that would not be available to all groups.

To ensure we are considering the implications of changing the law on marriage for all groups, we invited the Law Commission to undertake a review which is currently underway and is expected to report in July of this year. By looking at the law comprehensively, the Law Commission will seek to put forward proposals that would ensure that, insofar as possible, groups and couples are all subject to the same rules and the same level of regulation. That reform is not possible by only authorising Humanist weddings, even on a temporary basis pending the Law Commission report.

The Government will carefully consider the Law Commission’s recommendations when the final report is published in July, and it is right for us to wait for the outcome of the report before amending marriage law any further.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the possibility of extending legal recognition to humanist marriages in premises approved for civil marriages and civil partnerships in advance of the outcome of the Law Commission review of marriage law; and, if any such assessment concluded that such an extension was not possible, why not.

Answered by Lord Wolfson of Tredegar

In 2014, the Government published a consultation paper and response assessing the potential merits of provision for non-religious belief marriages. This concluded that the matter was complex, and that by allowing Humanists to solemnise marriages in unrestricted locations, the Government would create a provision for Humanists that would not be available to all groups.

To ensure we are considering the implications of changing the law on marriage for all groups, we invited the Law Commission to undertake a review which is currently underway and is expected to report in July of this year. By looking at the law comprehensively, the Law Commission will seek to put forward proposals that would ensure that, insofar as possible, groups and couples are all subject to the same rules and the same level of regulation. That reform is not possible by only authorising Humanist weddings, even on a temporary basis pending the Law Commission report.

The Government will carefully consider the Law Commission’s recommendations when the final report is published in July, and it is right for us to wait for the outcome of the report before amending marriage law any further.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if he will make an (a) economic and (b) equalities impact assessment of bringing forward legislative proposals for humanist marriages ahead of the outcome of the Law Commission's review of marriage law.

Answered by Tom Pursglove - Minister of State (Minister for Legal Migration and Delivery)

The Government consulted in 2014 on marriages by non-religious belief organisations. This concluded that the matter was complex, and that by allowing Humanists to solemnise marriages in unrestricted locations, the Government would create a provision for Humanists that would not be available to all groups. Its summary assessment of costs and benefits was published in the response, which can be found at https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/marriages-by-non-religious-belief-organisations.

To ensure we are considering the implications of changing the law on marriage on all groups, we invited the Law Commission to undertake a review which is currently underway and is expected to report in July of this year. By looking at the law comprehensively, the Law Commission will seek to put forward proposals that would ensure that, insofar as possible, groups and couples are all subject to the same rules, costs, and the same level of regulation. That reform is not possible by only authorising Humanist weddings, even on a temporary basis pending the Law Commission report. The Government will reconsider this issue on the basis of the Law Commission's recommendations.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if he will bring forward legislative proposals recognising humanist marriages in advance of wider marriage law reform following a positive report from the Law Commission.

Answered by Tom Pursglove - Minister of State (Minister for Legal Migration and Delivery)

In 2014, the Government published a consultation paper and response assessing the potential merits of provision for non-religious belief marriages. This concluded that the matter was complex, and that by allowing Humanists to solemnise marriages in unrestricted locations, the Government would create a provision for Humanists that would not be available to all groups.

To ensure we are considering the implications of changing the law on marriage on all groups, we invited the Law Commission to undertake a review which is currently underway and is expected to report in July of this year. By looking at the law comprehensively, the Law Commission will seek to put forward proposals that would ensure that, insofar as possible, groups and couples are all subject to the same rules and the same level of regulation. That reform is not possible by only authorising Humanist weddings, even on a temporary basis pending the Law Commission report.

The Government will carefully consider the Law Commission’s recommendations when the final report is published in July, and it is right for us to wait for the outcome of the report before amending marriage law any further.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether he has made an assessment of the financial impact of the policy not to legislate for the legal recognition of humanist marriages until after the Law Commission review, for couples that want a humanist marriage, who must also have a civil ceremony for their marriage to be legally recognised.

Answered by Tom Pursglove - Minister of State (Minister for Legal Migration and Delivery)

The Government consulted in 2014 on marriages by non-religious belief organisations. Its summary assessment of costs and benefits was published in the response, which can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/marriages-by-non-religious-belief-organisations(opens in a new tab). The Law Commission will also be looking into the impact of the current law on costs incurred by humanist couples. The Government will reconsider this issue on the basis of the Law Commission's recommendations. This report is expected in July 2022.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to the Government's 20 December 2021 announcement of proposals to use interim reform to legislate for outdoor civil and religious marriages, for what reason the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Justice stated that legislating for humanist marriages would pre-empt the Law Commission’s review of marriage law, Official Report, 27 January 2022, col 439 WH.

Answered by Tom Pursglove - Minister of State (Minister for Legal Migration and Delivery)

By looking at the law comprehensively, the Law Commission will be able to ensure that, insofar as possible, groups and couples are all subject to the same rules and the same level of regulation. The Law Commission recommendations are expected to eliminate the current situation where a couple with one set of beliefs is legally permitted to marry in one type of location (for example, in a private garden), but a couple with another set of beliefs is not. That reform is not possible by only authorising humanist weddings.

The Government will carefully consider the Law Commission’s recommendations when the final report is published, and it is right for us to wait for the outcome of the Law Commission’s report due in July.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have, if any, to grant full legal status to humanist marriages.

Answered by Lord Wolfson of Tredegar

The Government will consider the case for comprehensive and enduring reform once the Law Commission has completed its review of marriage law. The Law Commission will present options for reforms to modernise marriage law. Options are expected to 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. The report is expected in July 2022.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment he has made of the equity of the administrative costs for humanist marriages; and if he will make a statement.

Answered by Tom Pursglove - Minister of State (Minister for Legal Migration and Delivery)

The Government consulted in 2014 on marriages by non-religious belief organisations. Its summary assessment of costs and benefits was published in the response, which can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/marriages-by-non-religious-belief-organisations. The Law Commission will also be looking into the impact of the current law on costs incurred by humanist couples. The Government will reconsider this issue on the basis of the Law Commission's recommendations. This report is expected in July 2022.