UK votes to ban first-cousin marriage

The country came down hard against first-cousin marriage, voting overwhelmingly to ban it in a result that cut through the day's other debates with unusual clarity. Even as the quieter voices warned that prohibition might simply drive ceremonies underground, the floor seized on the stark warning that "if there was a chemical" producing the same risks it would be outlawed instantly.

The verdicts

Should first-cousin marriages be banned in the UK? settled decisively in favour of prohibition. Should the UK invest more in renewable energy sources over natural gas? passed by the slimmest of margins; the chamber showed clear distrust of the premise that renewables are truly renewable, yet still chose to tilt policy away from gas.

On housing, voters rejected making air conditioning mandatory in all newly built homes, preferring instead that new properties simply be built fit for a hotter climate. The country also came down firmly on the side of limiting circumcision of babies to medical need, not religious ritual, treating the informed choice of the individual as the decisive moral unit rather than parental or religious custom.

Does the UK have too many universities? drew a clear yes, with the bluntest prescription being to keep the best and get rid of the rest; the argument was less against learning itself than against a system asked to do too much. Should we repeal the online safety act? passed narrowly, the repeal camp arguing successfully that the legislation is being misused, though many preferred reform over outright surrender.

Voters backed fines for social media platforms that algorithmically promote videos of illegal acts, brushing aside warnings that "illegality" casts too broad a net. Finally, the proposed swap of council tax for rises in income and inheritance tax was firmly rejected; the sharpest voices warned it would simply run out of people left to tax, yet almost nobody rose to defend the status quo.

Voting continues today.

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