Police and Crime Commissioner for Staffordshire Matthew Ellis has welcomed new legislation which makes it a crime to force people into marriage.
A forced marriage is one in which one or both people are coerced into marriage against their will. The new law makes it a crime that is punishable by up to seven years in prison.
The Commissioner said: “Forced marriage is a form of domestic abuse that is little more than slavery and is abhorrent.
“This new legislation will protect thousands of potential victims across the country – including people in Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent – every year.
“It’s about protecting often young and vulnerable people from being coerced or pressured into a marriage against their will.
“But enforcement alone is not enough. We need a joined-up approach to domestic abuse that puts victims first and must intervene early to raise awareness about forced marriage among young people.”
A forced marriage is not the same as an arranged marriage where families take a role in choosing partners but both parties enter into the relationship freely.
Deputy PCC Sue Arnold is overseeing a review and reform of services on behalf of the Commissioner so that victims of domestic abuse are supported in ways that recognise their individual circumstances and needs better.
She will be hosting a conference about Female Genital Mutilation, another form of domestic abuse, in Staffordshire this September. For more details on attending see: http://www.staffsscb.org.uk/professionals/Inter-Agencytraining/nomination/
