Calls to ban first-cousin marriage to be raised in Parliament

Existing legislation states the prohibited degrees of relationship for marriage include those to a sibling, parent or child, but not marriages between first cousins (Anthony Devlin/PA) - (PA Archive)

Marriages between first cousins would be banned in the UK under a proposal to be tabled in Parliament.

Conservative former minister Richard Holden said such marriages have been linked to a higher rate of birth defects and can also “reinforce negative structures and control women”.