Peers across the chamber in the House of Lords called for legal recognition of humanist marriages in an oral question on the subject called by Baroness Thornton. Humanists UK welcomed the further calls for reform, and urges the Government to use its existing powers to legally recognise humanist marriages without delay, even in the interim while it considers wholesale marriage reform.
Cross-party peers call for legal recognition of humanist marriages
Labour peer Baroness Thornton, member of the All-Party Parliamentary Humanist Group (APPHG) asked the Government for the progress and timetable towards legal recognition of humanist marriages. Responding, Marriage Minister Baroness Levitt outlined that the Government will legally recognise humanist marriages in England and Wales as part of its wider reforms to weddings law which will take place when parliamentary time allows and stated the Government will consult on the details early this year.
Replying, Baroness Thornton pushed for further clarity on the timeframe, given that it is already early 2026, and given how long humanist couples have already waited since the Government acquired the power to grant legal recognition of humanist marriages by Order (without requiring primary legislation) since the Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Act 2013. Replying, Baroness Levitt outlined that the Government would do so ‘as soon as possible’ but ruled out using the Order-making power.
Crossbench peer Lord Birt, APPHG member, raised that ‘in Scotland in 2024 there were more humanist weddings than all religious faiths combined’ and pushed the Government to clarify when humanist marriages will be delivered.
Baroness Whitaker, Labour peer and APPHG member, raised that Melanie Field, the lead civil servant on the 2013 Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Act, determined that the case for laying the humanist marriages Order is ‘overwhelming’ and that laying the Order wouldn’t introduce any new inconsistency in the rules.
Conservative peer Lord Hayward compared the debate on humanist marriages to that on same-sex marriage in Northern Ireland, noting that both issues had broad consensus and support in both Houses. He questioned why legislation on same-sex marriage in Northern Ireland had been able to pass, while humanist marriages is taking so long.
Liberal Democrats and APPHG member Baroness Burt asked ‘what advice does the Government have for humanist couples who are waiting to be wed and who have heard that there will be a fourth consultation, as well as the introduction of complex, and potentially controversial, marriage law, to take place ahead of this much-needed change?’.
The Lord Bishop of Southwell and Nottingham indicated his Church’s support for humanist marriages and opposition to the wider reforms, and said he welcomed the Government’s intention to ‘make it easier for couples to marry in legally binding ceremonies which reflect their religious or non-religious beliefs’ however he said he was concerned by the potential direction of travel in some aspects of these reforms ‘particularly with regard to the possible authorisation of this new category of commercial celebrants’ and asked the Minister ‘to set out how the Government will ensure that safeguards are in place to protect against the commercialisation of weddings?’.
This is the latest in a number of oral questions in the Lords posed by Baroness Thornton on the topic following questions last year in July and February, and in October and December 2024. At the same time, parliamentarians have asked questions in the Commons as well as held a Westminster Hall debate attended by a large number of MPs last summer who shared how the lack of legal recognition had affected them and called for reform. The need for reform was again raised in a recent Commons debate on marriage reform last week.
Humanists UK Director of Human Rights and Advocacy Karen Wright commented:
‘We welcome today’s calls for legal recognition of humanist marriages, which represent the latest example of widespread political support for legal recognition of humanist marriages following similar calls from MPs last week.
‘Humanist couples have already waited too long to be given equal marriage rights as their religious counterparts. While we welcome the Government’s commitment to legally recognise humanist marriages, we call on it to act now to lay the Order even in the interim while it considers wholesale marriage reform.’
Notes
For further comment or information, media should contact Humanists UK Head of Press and Campaign Communications Nathan Stilwell at press@humanists.uk or phone 0203 675 0959 (media only).
Legal recognition of humanist marriages in local jurisdictions
Humanist marriages gained legal recognition in Scotland in 2005, where since 2022 more humanist weddings have been conducted each year than religious marriages of all kinds combined. They also gained legal recognition in the Republic of Ireland in 2012; in Northern Ireland in 2018, following a Court of Appeal ruling that concluded that a failure to do so would be a breach of human rights and now make up 1 in 7 marriages there; in Jersey in 2019; and in Guernsey in 2021.
In England and Wales, however, humanist couples must have an unwanted additional civil ceremony for their marriage to be legally recognised. A change in law has been under constant Government review since 2013. The Marriage Act gave the Government the power to enact legal recognition of humanist marriages by Order – which would take as little time as 90 minutes in each the House of Commons and House of Lords. But in the years since, the Government has not done this. Instead the matter has been reviewed three times, most recently by the Law Commission, which published its report in July 2022. The previous Government did not issue its response before the General Election was called. Labour supported legal recognition of humanist marriages by Order since 2014 while in opposition. But now in power, the new government said it needed more time to set out a position while it considered the Law Commission’s proposals. It has now responded and said it will consult on its proposals in early 2026 before introducing legislation to reform marriage law when parliamentary time allows.
Read the debate.
Read the Law Commission’s review on Marriage Law and the Government’s response to it.
Read more about our work on humanist marriages.
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