HL Deb 23 April 1968 vol 291 cc621-2WA
LORD BARNBY

asked Her Majesty's Government:

Whether in certain parts of the Commonwealth whence immigrants may seek admission here, more than one wife is legal; and, if so, whether it is not desirable, in view of the pressure of population here, to limit the numbers of those claiming to enter as dependants.

THE MINISTER OF STATE, HOME OFFICE (LORD STONHAM)

Polygamous marriages are lawful in a number of Commonwealth countries, and a woman who has contracted such a marriage is, under the Commonwealth Immigrants Acts 1962 and 1968, entitled to admission in company with or to join her husband if the marriage is one that would be recognised as valid under our law. But there is no evidence that polygamous marriages account for the entry of any significant number of dependants.