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Written Question
Female Genital Mutilation and Forced Marriage
Tuesday 27th February 2024

Asked by: Lord Bishop of St Albans (Bishops - Bishops)

Question to the Home Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Stewart of Dirleton on 29 March 2023 (HL6584), when the government-funded feasibility study on the prevalence of female genital mutilation and forced marriage in England and Wales will be published.

Answered by Lord Sharpe of Epsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)

Since April 2019, the Home Office has required police forces to provide quarterly data returns on the number of offences they have recorded as being related to ‘honour’-based abuse, which includes FGM. In October 2023, the Home Office published the fourth set of these annual statistics, which included 84 offences relating to FGM covering the year to March 2023. Data on prosecutions is the responsibility of the Ministry of Justice.

Between April 2022 and March 2023, the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) recorded one offence which was charged by the police under the Female Genital Mutilation Act 2003. This was discontinued at its first hearing due to an incorrect charge submitted by the police. Separately, in October 2023, a defendant was found guilty of aiding the female genital mutilation of a non-UK person contrary to section 3 of the Act. This defendant was originally charged in 2018.

In April 2023, the Home Office commissioned the University of Birmingham to conduct a feasibility study to determine whether it is possible to produce a robust prevalence estimate of FGM and forced marriage. This work is ongoing and decisions about next steps will be taken in due course.


Written Question
Female Genital Mutilation: Prosecutions
Tuesday 27th February 2024

Asked by: Lord Bishop of St Albans (Bishops - Bishops)

Question to the Home Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government how many female genital mutilation offences were recorded between April 2022 and March 2023; and of those, how many prosecutions have occurred.

Answered by Lord Sharpe of Epsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)

Since April 2019, the Home Office has required police forces to provide quarterly data returns on the number of offences they have recorded as being related to ‘honour’-based abuse, which includes FGM. In October 2023, the Home Office published the fourth set of these annual statistics, which included 84 offences relating to FGM covering the year to March 2023. Data on prosecutions is the responsibility of the Ministry of Justice.

Between April 2022 and March 2023, the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) recorded one offence which was charged by the police under the Female Genital Mutilation Act 2003. This was discontinued at its first hearing due to an incorrect charge submitted by the police. Separately, in October 2023, a defendant was found guilty of aiding the female genital mutilation of a non-UK person contrary to section 3 of the Act. This defendant was originally charged in 2018.

In April 2023, the Home Office commissioned the University of Birmingham to conduct a feasibility study to determine whether it is possible to produce a robust prevalence estimate of FGM and forced marriage. This work is ongoing and decisions about next steps will be taken in due course.


Written Question
Forced Marriage: Children
Monday 23rd October 2023

Asked by: Pauline Latham (Conservative - Mid Derbyshire)

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether her Department has (a) provided training for police officers on and (b) taken steps to monitor enforcement by police of the new crime of arranging for a child to marry since the introduction of the Marriage and Civil Partnerships (Minimum Age) Act 2022; whether her Department has published guidance for police officers on (i) preventing and (ii) intervening in suspected child marriage cases; what data her Department holds on safeguarding measures introduced by police forces to help ensure that suspected child marriage cases are managed adequately; and whether she has had discussions with the Secretaries of State for Health and for Education on (A) training on, (B) monitoring of, (C) guidance on and (D) safeguarding measures for the management of such cases by (1) social workers and (2) teachers.

Answered by Sarah Dines

The Government is committed to tackling forced marriage. On 27 February 2023, we brought into force legislation which raised the minimum age of marriage and civil partnership in England and Wales to 18, and expanded the offence of forced marriage so it is illegal to do anything to cause a child to marry before they turn 18, even if coercion is not used.

The joint Home Office and Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) Forced Marriage Unit (FMU) has been actively raising awareness of the new forced marriage legislation in all its presentations and across its social media platforms since January 2023.

The FMU runs regular workshops and presentations for police officers, social workers, local authorities, registrars and others. In 2022, the FMU delivered training to 1,537 professionals and the unit has reached over 3,000 professionals by the end of September 2023. This includes bespoke training sessions on request to police forces. Over 650 police officers have been given this training since the legislation changed in February 2023. The Home Office also worked with the National Police Chiefs’ Council lead on HBA to ensure that forces were prepared for the commencement of the legislation. This included a joint national meeting with relevant force leads and the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) before the legislation came into force.

While the Home Office does not directly hold data on safeguarding measures introduced by police forces to help ensure that suspected child marriage cases are managed adequately, we do work closely with the dedicated NPCC lead for Honour Based Abuse to ensure forces have the support they need. In addition, the College of Policing published authorised professional practice guidance for officers on ‘honour’-based abuse (HBA) which has been updated together with domestic abuse training and the Police Education Qualifications Framework to incorporate material about the new legislation.

Whilst there have not been dedicated meetings on this subject with Home Office Ministers and the DHSC and DfE Secretaries of State, Ministers do meet regularly to discuss matters of crime and safeguarding, with a dedicated VAWG Ministerial Steering Group taking place later this month.

The FMU is jointly funded by the Home Office and FCDO. It currently has six full time staff, two joint heads (one from each department) and four case workers. The Unit’s operating costs including staff time, outreach activity and casework are funded through the departmental budgets of its parent organisations.

Statistics on prosecutions and convictions for the new offence of arranging for a child to marry as part of the Marriage and Civil Partnerships (Minimum Age) Act 2022 are the responsibility of the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) and are not currently available as the offence only came into force in February 2023. Statistics on the offence will be available in future publications of MoJ’s Criminal Justice System Statistics. The Government does not hold data on arrests or investigations for the offence. The FMU publishes annual statistics, including on the total number of cases per year, online at: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/forced-marriage-unit-statistics.


Written Question
Forced Marriage Unit
Monday 23rd October 2023

Asked by: Pauline Latham (Conservative - Mid Derbyshire)

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what funding and how many full-time equivalent staff have been allocated to the Forced Marriage Unit in each financial year since its foundation; and how many cases have been reported to that unit in each of those years.

Answered by Sarah Dines

The Government is committed to tackling forced marriage. On 27 February 2023, we brought into force legislation which raised the minimum age of marriage and civil partnership in England and Wales to 18, and expanded the offence of forced marriage so it is illegal to do anything to cause a child to marry before they turn 18, even if coercion is not used.

The joint Home Office and Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) Forced Marriage Unit (FMU) has been actively raising awareness of the new forced marriage legislation in all its presentations and across its social media platforms since January 2023.

The FMU runs regular workshops and presentations for police officers, social workers, local authorities, registrars and others. In 2022, the FMU delivered training to 1,537 professionals and the unit has reached over 3,000 professionals by the end of September 2023. This includes bespoke training sessions on request to police forces. Over 650 police officers have been given this training since the legislation changed in February 2023. The Home Office also worked with the National Police Chiefs’ Council lead on HBA to ensure that forces were prepared for the commencement of the legislation. This included a joint national meeting with relevant force leads and the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) before the legislation came into force.

While the Home Office does not directly hold data on safeguarding measures introduced by police forces to help ensure that suspected child marriage cases are managed adequately, we do work closely with the dedicated NPCC lead for Honour Based Abuse to ensure forces have the support they need. In addition, the College of Policing published authorised professional practice guidance for officers on ‘honour’-based abuse (HBA) which has been updated together with domestic abuse training and the Police Education Qualifications Framework to incorporate material about the new legislation.

Whilst there have not been dedicated meetings on this subject with Home Office Ministers and the DHSC and DfE Secretaries of State, Ministers do meet regularly to discuss matters of crime and safeguarding, with a dedicated VAWG Ministerial Steering Group taking place later this month.

The FMU is jointly funded by the Home Office and FCDO. It currently has six full time staff, two joint heads (one from each department) and four case workers. The Unit’s operating costs including staff time, outreach activity and casework are funded through the departmental budgets of its parent organisations.

Statistics on prosecutions and convictions for the new offence of arranging for a child to marry as part of the Marriage and Civil Partnerships (Minimum Age) Act 2022 are the responsibility of the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) and are not currently available as the offence only came into force in February 2023. Statistics on the offence will be available in future publications of MoJ’s Criminal Justice System Statistics. The Government does not hold data on arrests or investigations for the offence. The FMU publishes annual statistics, including on the total number of cases per year, online at: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/forced-marriage-unit-statistics.


Written Question
Forced Marriage Unit
Monday 23rd October 2023

Asked by: Pauline Latham (Conservative - Mid Derbyshire)

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how (a) much funding and (b) many full-time equivalent staff have been allocated to the Forced Marriage Unit in each financial year since its was founded; and how many cases have been reported to that unit in each of those years.

Answered by Sarah Dines

The Government is committed to tackling forced marriage. On 27 February 2023, we brought into force legislation which raised the minimum age of marriage and civil partnership in England and Wales to 18, and expanded the offence of forced marriage so it is illegal to do anything to cause a child to marry before they turn 18, even if coercion is not used.

The joint Home Office and Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) Forced Marriage Unit (FMU) has been actively raising awareness of the new forced marriage legislation in all its presentations and across its social media platforms since January 2023.

The FMU runs regular workshops and presentations for police officers, social workers, local authorities, registrars and others. In 2022, the FMU delivered training to 1,537 professionals and the unit has reached over 3,000 professionals by the end of September 2023. This includes bespoke training sessions on request to police forces. Over 650 police officers have been given this training since the legislation changed in February 2023. The Home Office also worked with the National Police Chiefs’ Council lead on HBA to ensure that forces were prepared for the commencement of the legislation. This included a joint national meeting with relevant force leads and the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) before the legislation came into force.

While the Home Office does not directly hold data on safeguarding measures introduced by police forces to help ensure that suspected child marriage cases are managed adequately, we do work closely with the dedicated NPCC lead for Honour Based Abuse to ensure forces have the support they need. In addition, the College of Policing published authorised professional practice guidance for officers on ‘honour’-based abuse (HBA) which has been updated together with domestic abuse training and the Police Education Qualifications Framework to incorporate material about the new legislation.

Whilst there have not been dedicated meetings on this subject with Home Office Ministers and the DHSC and DfE Secretaries of State, Ministers do meet regularly to discuss matters of crime and safeguarding, with a dedicated VAWG Ministerial Steering Group taking place later this month.

The FMU is jointly funded by the Home Office and FCDO. It currently has six full time staff, two joint heads (one from each department) and four case workers. The Unit’s operating costs including staff time, outreach activity and casework are funded through the departmental budgets of its parent organisations.

Statistics on prosecutions and convictions for the new offence of arranging for a child to marry as part of the Marriage and Civil Partnerships (Minimum Age) Act 2022 are the responsibility of the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) and are not currently available as the offence only came into force in February 2023. Statistics on the offence will be available in future publications of MoJ’s Criminal Justice System Statistics. The Government does not hold data on arrests or investigations for the offence. The FMU publishes annual statistics, including on the total number of cases per year, online at: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/forced-marriage-unit-statistics.


Written Question
Forced Marriage: Children
Monday 23rd October 2023

Asked by: Pauline Latham (Conservative - Mid Derbyshire)

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many (a) convictions, (b) prosecutions, (c) arrests and (d) live, ongoing criminal investigations there were for the new crime of arranging for a child to marry between the introduction of the Marriage and Civil Partnerships (Minimum Age) Act 2022 and 31 July 2023; and how many referrals the Forced Marriage Unit has received for child marriage cases in that time period.

Answered by Sarah Dines

The Government is committed to tackling forced marriage. On 27 February 2023, we brought into force legislation which raised the minimum age of marriage and civil partnership in England and Wales to 18, and expanded the offence of forced marriage so it is illegal to do anything to cause a child to marry before they turn 18, even if coercion is not used.

The joint Home Office and Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) Forced Marriage Unit (FMU) has been actively raising awareness of the new forced marriage legislation in all its presentations and across its social media platforms since January 2023.

The FMU runs regular workshops and presentations for police officers, social workers, local authorities, registrars and others. In 2022, the FMU delivered training to 1,537 professionals and the unit has reached over 3,000 professionals by the end of September 2023. This includes bespoke training sessions on request to police forces. Over 650 police officers have been given this training since the legislation changed in February 2023. The Home Office also worked with the National Police Chiefs’ Council lead on HBA to ensure that forces were prepared for the commencement of the legislation. This included a joint national meeting with relevant force leads and the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) before the legislation came into force.

While the Home Office does not directly hold data on safeguarding measures introduced by police forces to help ensure that suspected child marriage cases are managed adequately, we do work closely with the dedicated NPCC lead for Honour Based Abuse to ensure forces have the support they need. In addition, the College of Policing published authorised professional practice guidance for officers on ‘honour’-based abuse (HBA) which has been updated together with domestic abuse training and the Police Education Qualifications Framework to incorporate material about the new legislation.

Whilst there have not been dedicated meetings on this subject with Home Office Ministers and the DHSC and DfE Secretaries of State, Ministers do meet regularly to discuss matters of crime and safeguarding, with a dedicated VAWG Ministerial Steering Group taking place later this month.

The FMU is jointly funded by the Home Office and FCDO. It currently has six full time staff, two joint heads (one from each department) and four case workers. The Unit’s operating costs including staff time, outreach activity and casework are funded through the departmental budgets of its parent organisations.

Statistics on prosecutions and convictions for the new offence of arranging for a child to marry as part of the Marriage and Civil Partnerships (Minimum Age) Act 2022 are the responsibility of the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) and are not currently available as the offence only came into force in February 2023. Statistics on the offence will be available in future publications of MoJ’s Criminal Justice System Statistics. The Government does not hold data on arrests or investigations for the offence. The FMU publishes annual statistics, including on the total number of cases per year, online at: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/forced-marriage-unit-statistics.


Written Question
Female Genital Mutilation: Prosecutions
Wednesday 29th March 2023

Asked by: Lord Bishop of St Albans (Bishops - Bishops)

Question to the Attorney General:

To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Sharpe of Epsom on 14 March (HL6096), what assessment they have made of why there have only been two prosecutions for female genital mutilation out of the 229 offences recorded.

Answered by Lord Stewart of Dirleton - Advocate General for Scotland

The Government is committed to tackling female genital mutilation (FGM) and all forms of Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG). The familial and hidden nature of FGM presents challenges in bringing a prosecution. Victims are mostly of a young age and vulnerable, and they often do not want to report offences that could lead to them giving evidence against family members. Some identified FGM victims have had the procedure before coming to the UK to live; in these circumstances there may not be jurisdiction to prosecute where the offence had no connection to the UK. Securing prosecutions is important, but it is also essential to protect women and girls at risk and to prevent FGM happening in the first place. FGM Protection Orders, mandatory reporting by front-line staff and an offence of failing to protect a girl from FGM are being used to safeguard those who may be at risk. The Government is funding a feasibility study to explore whether a more rigorous estimation of the prevalence of FGM and forced marriage in England and Wales can be made, to allow a deeper understanding of these crimes.

The CPS is working closely with stakeholders, including FGM support organisations, to develop a new VAWG Strategy to bring more offenders to justice and to improve victims’ experience of the criminal justice system. It will be published in Summer 2023.


Written Question
British Nationals Abroad: Marriage
Tuesday 14th March 2023

Asked by: Lord Bishop of St Albans (Bishops - Bishops)

Question to the Home Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government what estimate they have made of number of girls under the age of 18 who are British Citizens who have been married abroad.

Answered by Lord Sharpe of Epsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)

The Government is committed to tackling forced marriage and female genital mutilation (FGM). On 27 February 2023 we brought into force legislation which raises the minimum age of marriage and civil partnership in England and Wales to 18, and expands the offence of forced marriage soit is illegal to do anything to cause a child to marry before they turn 18, even if coercion is not used.

Since April 2019, the Annual Data Requirement for England and Wales has required police forces to provide quarterly data returns to the Home Office on the number of offences they have recorded which they have identified as being related to ‘honour’-based abuse, which includes FGM. The table below shows the number of FGM offences recorded by the police from April 2019 to March 2022.

April 2019-March 2020

April 2020-March 2021

April 2021-March 2022

FGM offences recorded by police

74

78

77

There have been two prosecutions for FGM under the Female Genital Mutilation Act 2003, these occurred in 2019.

We do not hold information on the number of British girls under the age of 18 who have been married abroad or on the total numbers of forced marriages which have occurred.

We recognise that data on the prevalence of FGM and forced marriage is limited. That is why are funding a feasibility study explore whether a more rigorous estimation of the prevalence of these crimes in England and Wales can be made. This study is estimated to complete later this year.


Written Question
Forced Marriage
Tuesday 14th March 2023

Asked by: Lord Bishop of St Albans (Bishops - Bishops)

Question to the Home Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government how many instances of forced marriage occurred in (1) 2022, (2) 2021, (3) 2020, and (4) 2019.

Answered by Lord Sharpe of Epsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)

The Government is committed to tackling forced marriage and female genital mutilation (FGM). On 27 February 2023 we brought into force legislation which raises the minimum age of marriage and civil partnership in England and Wales to 18, and expands the offence of forced marriage soit is illegal to do anything to cause a child to marry before they turn 18, even if coercion is not used.

Since April 2019, the Annual Data Requirement for England and Wales has required police forces to provide quarterly data returns to the Home Office on the number of offences they have recorded which they have identified as being related to ‘honour’-based abuse, which includes FGM. The table below shows the number of FGM offences recorded by the police from April 2019 to March 2022.

April 2019-March 2020

April 2020-March 2021

April 2021-March 2022

FGM offences recorded by police

74

78

77

There have been two prosecutions for FGM under the Female Genital Mutilation Act 2003, these occurred in 2019.

We do not hold information on the number of British girls under the age of 18 who have been married abroad or on the total numbers of forced marriages which have occurred.

We recognise that data on the prevalence of FGM and forced marriage is limited. That is why are funding a feasibility study explore whether a more rigorous estimation of the prevalence of these crimes in England and Wales can be made. This study is estimated to complete later this year.


Written Question
Female Genital Mutilation: Criminal Investigation and Prosecutions
Tuesday 14th March 2023

Asked by: Lord Bishop of St Albans (Bishops - Bishops)

Question to the Home Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government how many cases of female genital mutilation have been (1) investigated, and (2) prosecuted, in (a) 2022, (b) 2021, (c) 2020, and (d) 2019.

Answered by Lord Sharpe of Epsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)

The Government is committed to tackling forced marriage and female genital mutilation (FGM). On 27 February 2023 we brought into force legislation which raises the minimum age of marriage and civil partnership in England and Wales to 18, and expands the offence of forced marriage soit is illegal to do anything to cause a child to marry before they turn 18, even if coercion is not used.

Since April 2019, the Annual Data Requirement for England and Wales has required police forces to provide quarterly data returns to the Home Office on the number of offences they have recorded which they have identified as being related to ‘honour’-based abuse, which includes FGM. The table below shows the number of FGM offences recorded by the police from April 2019 to March 2022.

April 2019-March 2020

April 2020-March 2021

April 2021-March 2022

FGM offences recorded by police

74

78

77

There have been two prosecutions for FGM under the Female Genital Mutilation Act 2003, these occurred in 2019.

We do not hold information on the number of British girls under the age of 18 who have been married abroad or on the total numbers of forced marriages which have occurred.

We recognise that data on the prevalence of FGM and forced marriage is limited. That is why are funding a feasibility study explore whether a more rigorous estimation of the prevalence of these crimes in England and Wales can be made. This study is estimated to complete later this year.