Under new laws (the Marriage and Civil Partnership (Minimum Age) Act 2022) the legal age of marriage and civil partnerships in England and Wales has been raised to 18 and adults could be imprisoned for facilitating underage marriages.
Previously, people could get married at the ages of 16 or 17 as long as they had parental consent. Campaigners had warned that this legal loophole had been exploited and used to coerce some young people into child marriage. By raising the minimum age it is hoped that this reduces the number of coercive or abusive child marriages and brings about positive outcomes for children, including:
- Limiting the number of opportunities for child abuse by families and spouses
- Promoting girls obtaining more education (often girls who marry at 16 or 17 are more likely to leave education).
The new laws also apply to cultural and/or religious marriages that are not registered with the local council.
The Bill, which was first introduced into Parliament last June, is said to “transform the life chances of many girls.”
Further details of the new marriage laws being introduced
The new laws will mean that children will not face penalties, it will be the adults/parents who facilitate their marriage and they could face up to seven years in prison with a hefty fine. This also includes any parents who take their children abroad to carry out the marriage, meaning it would still be an offence to take children out of the country with the intention of carrying out a wedding.
Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice, Dominic Raab, said:
“Forced child marriage ruins lives and the Bill will keep vulnerable young people safe by raising the legal age of marriage to 18 and closing the gaps in the law which leaves them at risk.”
The government backed the Bill and it has sailed through Parliament with very little opposition and has recently received Royal Assent, meaning it has now become law.
The new laws do not affect marriages or civil partnerships that took place prior to this legislation and do not apply in Northern Ireland or Scotland, where people can still marry at 16 (parental consent is not needed in Scotland but is in Northern Ireland).
A separate forced marriage law, introduced in 2014, made it a criminal offence to force someone of any age to marry against his or her will and would be punishable by up to seven years in prison.
Ending child marriage
Campaigner, Payzee Malika, was coerced into marriage and said:
“The tears of joy roll down my face because I know what this means for girls like me.”
While Payzee escaped her marriage, her sister, Banaz, unfortunately, was murdered in a so-called honour killing. She said:
“Every day I thought of her, I fought for her, this law could have saved her.”
The MP Pauline Latham has thanked everybody who has supported the campaign to end child marriage once and for all in this country.
International laws
Not only do the new laws not apply to Northern Ireland or Scotland but there are other countries that allow 16-17-year-olds to marry under parental permission. For example, In Cyprus, Latvia and Malta, a marriage may be solemnised by parent consent only, and no approvals from further bodies are needed.
In Croatia, Czech Republic, Finland, and Greece, a judicial body needs to consent, but parental consent is not needed. In some of these countries, the parents or guardians are heard but their consent is not required.
Globally, child brides are often married to men much older than they are, for example, in Mauritania and Nigeria more than half of the married girls aged 15-19 are in union with men at least 10 years older than they are.
What other marriage laws could potentially be changed?
It has been reported that the Law Commission is currently in the process of reviewing marriage laws more broadly in an attempt to ensure that they are reflective of modern times. Certain prohibitive rules, such as those which restrict some marriages from taking place outdoors or within other venues and rules that prevent some non-religious belief groups from carrying out legally recognised weddings, are considered by many to be outdated and require change.
The Government is also said to be considering how English and Welsh marriage laws could be updated to work more collaboratively with Sharia law.
Comment
Although forced marriage has been a criminal offence for some time, the law was failing to protect all children from being coerced into child marriages as it is often difficult for a child to understand, recognise coercion and then seek help.
Coercive control is an insidious form of abuse which often features in relationships where there is an imbalance of power.
Historically, children aged between 16 and 18 have faced immense pressure to marry and this has impacted their chances later in life.
Allowing the extra time will reduce those stressors and give more freedom to these young people.
I am often asked to advise on relationship breakdown featuring coercive control, domestic abuse and physical violence. Hopefully increasing the age of consent will help to reduce this.
The purpose of this new law is to safeguard and protect all children against all types of child marriage (whether registered or not).
How can we help?
Melanie Bridgen is a Partner in our Family Law team, specialising in children law.
At Nelsons, we have a dedicated team of experts who can give specialist advice and representation. If you need advice on child contact or any other Family Law-related matters, please contact Melanie or another member of the team in Derby, Leicester or Nottingham on 0800 024 1976 or via our online form.
Melanie or the team will be happy to discuss your circumstances in more detail and give you more information about the services that our Family Law team can provide along with details of our hourly rates and fixed fee services.
Contact us