§ Read 3a (according to Order).
§ Clause 1:
§ Alteration of place of marriage.
§ 1.—(1) Where the parties to an intended marriage have duly fulfilled all the conditions required by law for enabling them to be married in a building in England, then, if either of the parties, being a member of His Majesty's Forces, has obtained from the appropriate authority a certificate that owing to the exigencies of His Majesty's service he or she cannot go to that building, the marriage may, during the war period—
- (a) be lawfully solemnized in any other building in England in which marriages may be lawfully solemnized, as if the parties duly fulfilled all the conditions required by law for enabling them to be married in that building; or
- (b) be lawfully celebrated by a minister in Scotland, or contracted in the office of an authorised registrar in Scotland, as if the parties had duly fulfilled all the conditions required by law for enabling the marriage to be so celebrated or contracted.
§ (2) Where the parties to an intended marriage have duly fulfilled all the conditions required by law for enabling a marriage between them to be celebrated or contracted in Scotland, then, if either of the parties, being a member of His Majesty's Forces, has obtained from the appropriate authority a certificate that owing to the exigencies of His Majesty's service he or she cannot go to Scotland to be married there, the marriage may, during the war period, be 214 lawfully solemnized in any building in England in which marriages may lawfully be solemnized, as if the parties thereto had duly fulfilled all the conditions required by law for enabling them to be married in that building.
§ LORD TEMPLEMOREmoved, in subsection (1), after "building," where that word occurs for the second time, to insert "and that the said authority has no reason to believe that he or she is already married." The noble Lord said: My Lords, the two Amendments which stand in my name follow closely on the lines of that moved by my noble friend Lord Phillimore during the Committee stage a week ago. The essence of both these Amendments is that the authority who grants the certificate, to the effect that the man or woman concerned is unable to get to the place at which, originally, it had been arranged that the marriage should take place, is required to amplify that certificate by a statement that he has no reason to believe that the man or woman is already married. As a matter of fact these two Amendments go beyond what was moved by my noble friend last week, in that they apply not only to marriages originally arranged to take place in England, but also to marriages originally arranged to take place in Scotland. I hope very much that what I have said meets the views of my noble friend, and I beg to move the first of the Amendments standing in my name.
§
Amendment moved—
Page 1, line 10, at end insert (" and that the said authority has no reason to believe that he or she is already married ").—(Lord Templemore.)
LORD PHILLIMOREMy Lords, I have to thank the noble Lord and the Government for this Amendment, which entirely carries out what was in the minds of myself and my supporters at the time. It is therefore very satisfactory that this should go through as an agreed Amendment. I would like, if I may, to add one word and it is that, as a result of the publication of the debate which ensued on this Amendment in the House, I have had certain correspondence which does go to show that quite simple steps could be taken to make more difficult the crime of bigamy. I think that in other times it might be worth while for that subject to be looked into further.
§ On Question, Amendment agreed to.
215
§
Amendment moved—
Page 2, line 1, after ("there") insert ("and that the said authority has no reason to believe that he or she is already married.")—(Lord Templemore.)
§ On Question, Amendment agreed to.
§ Bill passed, and sent to the Commons.