Labour accused of ‘secretly backing cousin marriage’ after blocking vote to ban ‘medieval’ practice

The Basildon & Billericay MP put pressure on Sir Keir Starmer’s Government to support his proposed ban, with the Prime Minister last year rejecting his request to whip Labour MPs in support of prohibiting close family members from tying the knot.

Mr Holden told GB News: “If you don’t back first-cousin marriage, you can just say so.

"But Labour do back first cousin marriage and they’re trying to hide their secretive support for the practice.

"It is an issue bound up with serious health implications, closed communities, and the isolation of the vulnerable.

"I am appalled, but sadly not surprised, that Labour is once again turning a blind eye to the issue and allowing it to be kicked into the long grass rather than taking a genuine stand or even explaining why they continue to back first-cousin marriage in the UK."

The Marriages (Prohibited Degrees of Relationship) Bill was due to return to the House of Commons for its second reading today, having initially been slated for January 17 last year.

The Private Members' Bill was also listed in parliamentary business papers in March 2025 following an objection taken via a standing order.

However, the House of Commons is no longer expected to sit on January 9, meaning no legislative progress has been made in 395 days.

Labour could bring the bill back to the Commons by giving Mr Holden a guillotined slot or by making his proposed ban official Government business.

Such a scenario remains unlikely, with ministers instead insisting that marriage law remains under review.

Sir Keir previously rejected Mr Holden's request for the Prime Minister to instruct his whips and the Leader of the House of Commons to allocate time for his proposed ban to be debated.

Mr Holden is now racing against the clock as all outstanding Private Members' Bills will fall from the legislative agenda after the next King's Speech.

The Tory MP would then be forced to reintroduce the proposed ban from scratch to kickstart the legislative process again in Parliament's next session.

Only a small number of Private Members' Bill ever return to the House of Commons for a second reading, with Fridays being exclusively allocated as the day to debate such legislation.

Mr Holden's bill is also not near the top of the list, meaning it will continue to be kicked into the "long grass" unless others fall or are withdrawn.

However, Labour MP Neil Coyle has voiced his support for a ban, warning: “The prevalence of infant mortality and birth defects alone warrants the ban.”

During an exchange at Prime Minister’s Questions last year, Sir Keir was urged to “think again” after No10 was accused of "instructing the whips to block this legislation".

However, the Prime Minister replied: “We've taken our position on that Bill, thank you.”

Health Secretary Wes Streeting later called on the NHS to apologise for publishing guidance that said first-cousin marriage had potential benefits.

Mr Streeting, who stopped short of backing the ban, said: “First-cousin marriages are high risk and unsafe, we see the genetic defects it causes, the harm that it causes. That’s why that advice should never have been published.”

Mr Holden proposed banning the practice, which was outlawed until Henry VIII broke with Rome in 1540, as a Ten Minute Rule Bill in December 2024.

However, pro-Gaza MP Iqbal Mohamed became the first parliamentarian to voice support for cousin marriage, pointing out that the practice remains “common” because it “helps to build family bonds and puts families on a more secure financial foothold”.

Cousin marriage remains a prevalent practice among 10 per cent of the world population, including in the Middle East and North Africa.

However, over 80 per cent of people marry their cousins in parts of rural Pakistan.

The rate also remains significantly above the global average in Saudi Arabia, Afghanistan and Iran.

Despite cousin couples remaining relatively uncommon in the UK, consanguineous marriage rates stood at 46 per cent among British Pakistanis in inner-city Bradford in 2023.

First-cousin marriages are also statistically more likely among members of the Irish Traveller community.

A bombshell poll released last year by YouGov revealed Pakistani and Bangladeshi Britons are most likely to support first cousin marriages, with 39 percent of those polled saying it should be legal and 47 per cent backing the proposed ban.

Meanwhile, 77 per cent of white and Indian Britons support a ban, with the proportion soaring to 82 per cent among black Britons.

Labour received a plurality of votes from Pakistani and Bangladeshi Britons at the 2024 General Election, hauling in 44 per cent of the vote.

While the pro-Palestine Green Party surged to 29 per cent, support for all other major parties among British Pakistanis and Bangladeshis remained at single digits.

However, backlash against Labour’s stance on Palestine resulted in independent pro-Gaza candidates picking up four once-staunchly red seats.

Labour is still facing pressure on this flank, with Mr Streeting hanging onto Ilford North by just 538 votes.

Following a dip in support since July 2024, Labour MPs appear increasingly vulnerable in swathes of heavily Muslim seats in Bradford, Birmingham, London and Luton.

However, research conducted by the University of Bradford found a child of first cousins is statistically more likely to develop speech and language difficulties.

The study also found a child of cousin marriage was significantly less likely to reach a good stage of development.

Separate research has revealed a child of cousin marriage is twice as likely to suffer from a birth defect, with an up to a one-in-four chance of developing specific recessive disorders.

Critics also fear there is a case for banning cousin marriage due to moral fears about exploitative matrimony.

Mr Holden’s intervention has sparked further commotion in the Commons.

Shadow Justice Secretary Robert Jenrick quizzed Shabana Mahmood on Labour’s position in December 2024.

The then-Justice Secretary replied by insisting Sir Keir’s Government was looking at “broader reform of marriage law”.

Justice Minister Alex Davies-Jones last year rejected proposals to crack down on cousin marriage.

The Safeguarding Minister later acknowledged some faith communities permit cousin marriage, later insisting the topic remains “complex and sensitive”.

However, then-Labour MP Ann Cryer called for a debate on the health risks of cousin marriages back in 2005.

The outspoken ex-Keighley MP, who was smeared as a racist for speaking out on grooming gangs, said: “As we address problems of smoking, drinking, obesity, we say it's a public health issue, and therefore we all have to get involved with it in persuading people to adopt a different lifestyle.

“I think the same should be applied to this problem in the Asian community.

“They must adopt a different lifestyle. They must look outside the family for husbands and wives for their young people.”

GB News has approached the Labour Party for comment.