Finance Minister introduces Bill to end child marriage in north

Finance Minister John O'Dowd has introduced legislation to the Assembly that would raise the minimum age for marriage and civil partnership in Northern Ireland from 16 to 18.

Under current law, young people aged 16 and 17 can marry or form a civil partnership with parental or equivalent consent. The Marriage and Civil Partnership Bill, introduced on Monday, would remove that provision entirely, setting the minimum age at 18 without exception.

The Bill also addresses the status of belief marriages, which have until now been permitted through temporary arrangements on the same basis as religious marriages. The new legislation would put belief marriages on a permanent legal footing, giving them the same statutory recognition as religious marriages.

Speaking following the introduction of the Bill, Minister O'Dowd said: "The legislation introduced will help to better safeguard our children and young people. Child marriage can increase the risk of forced marriage and can deprive children of education and other essential life opportunities. Girls, who are more frequently married as children than boys, are especially at risk."

The Minister noted that organisations including the United Nations and local stakeholders have recommended raising the minimum age for marriage from 16 to 18, and said that consultation responses had been overwhelmingly in favour of the change. "I am therefore convinced of the need for change, particularly given that almost every respondent to the consultation supported raising the minimum age," he said.

On the matter of belief marriages, Minister O'Dowd added: "For several years, belief marriages have been permitted through temporary arrangements. This Bill will now put belief marriages on a permanent legal footing, giving them the same statutory recognition as religious marriages."

The Bill will

• Include belief marriage - legally binding marriage by people who subscribe to non-religious belief systems such as humanism - in the marriage law on the same basis as religious marriage.
• Increase the minimum age for marriage and civil partnership from the present 16 to 18.
• Criminalise the arrangement of marriages that involve people under the age of 18.