PARLIAMENTARY WRITTEN QUESTION
Cohabitation: Legislation (17 January 2024)

It is important that people are aware of the legal distinctions between getting married, forming a civil partnership and living together as cohabitants. The Government has already taken steps in this area. The Department for Education’s statutory guidance on relationships education includes the need for schools to ensure that pupils are aware of what marriage is, including its legal status and the legal status of other types of long-term relationship. The Government is also reviewing the information currently available to the public on the legal rights afforded to spouses, civil partners, and cohabiting couples.

The Government considers that existing work underway on the law of marriage and divorce, which are directly relevant to issues concerning cohabitants, must conclude before considering any change to the law in respect of the rights of cohabitants on relationship breakdown.