UK: Labour Considers Banning First-Cousin Marriage
The Spin
Left narrative
94% of children born to first cousins have no genetic problems, and the absolute risk increase is comparable to factors like obesity or older maternal age. A ban wouldn't save any existing child from harm, but instead prevent the birth of targeted minority demographics in the U.K. Better genetic screening and culturally sensitive education are the ethical path forward.
Right narrative
The data on first-cousin marriage is damning: children of first cousins are nearly three times more likely to die by age 10 and 90% more likely to have learning difficulties, yet we are repeatedly told that this as a cultural trade-off worth tolerating. Societies built on prohibitions against kin marriage developed the individualism and openness that define Western success, and its continued practice in the U.K. degrades its cultural norms.