MINISTRY OF JUSTICE
News Release (050/07) issued by The Government News Network on 10
May 2007
The Government
today pledged its support for legislation aimed at protecting the
victims of forced marriages and preventing them from taking place.
The Forced Marriages Bill is a private member's Bill that
was introduced to Parliament by Lord Lester. The Government has
been working to strengthen the draft legislation and laid
amendments to the Bill in April that would provide greater powers
for the courts to identify and protect victims of forced marriages.
The amendments will be debated in the House of Lords today during
the Committee stage of the Bill.
Cathy Ashton, minister at the Ministry of Justice said:
"I'm delighted to be able to provide Government support
for this Bill which, as amended, will enable us to make better use
of civil court remedies to provide protection to those placed in
this intolerable position.
"The changes to the law will enable courts to order
injunctions and other measures to prevent forced marriages, and in
some cases to attach powers of arrest if those orders are
breached. They will become a powerful and useful new tool for
those trying to protect victims of forced marriage."
Under the Bill, where a forced marriage has taken place, courts
would be able to make orders to protect the victim and help remove
them from that situation. As victims of forced marriage are often
unable to protect themselves, the Bill enables third parties to be
able to apply to courts for protection on their behalf.
Furthermore, courts would be able to attach powers of arrest to
orders so that if someone breaches an order they could be arrested
and brought back to the original court to consider the alleged breach.
Additionally the Bill would enable county courts to hear forced
marriage cases which can presently only be heard by the High Court.
Government support of the Bill greatly enhances the likelihood of
it receiving sufficient Parliamentary time to complete its passage
and become law, subject to approval by both Houses of Parliament.
Notes to Editors
1. Private Members' Bills are Public Bills introduced by MPs
and Lords who aren't government ministers.
2. Forced marriage is an infringement of the basic right to
choose who you marry and when you marry. The Forced Marriage
(Civil Protection) Bill 2006-07 was introduced to Parliament on 16
November 2006 by Lord Lester of Herne Hill.
3. The amendments to the Bill and its progress can be viewed on
the Parliament website: http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/pabills/200607/forced_marriage_civil_protection.htm
4. The joint FCO/Home Office Forced Marriage Unit (FMU) was
established in January 2005 and is the first of its kind in the
world. The FMU assists around 300 victims of forced marriage each
year and also deals with policy implementation and provides
information and assistance to concerned professionals.
5. On 8 May 2007 Baroness Scotland and Lord Triesman launched the
Government's two-year strategy on tackling forced marriage.
For more information visit: http://www.fco.gov.uk/Files/kfile/FMU%20Two-Year%20Strategy.pdf
http://www.justice.gov.uk