Letter: Northern Ireland Executive should prioritise strengthening marriage, not accelerating divorce with changes to legislation at a time when stability is needed

The Department of Finance consultation on sweeping changes to divorce legislation includes scrapping fault-based grounds and reducing separation periods.

These reforms would shift the law’s focus away from reconciliation and lifelong commitment, and instead foster a culture in which marriage is treated as disposable.

The NI Executive should be working to strengthen marriage, not accelerate its breakdown. Marriage is a lifelong commitment that provides the strongest foundation for children, families, and communities. But making divorce quicker gives the impression that wedding vows no longer matter.

Our MLAs risk sending the message that marriage is disposable, at the very moment society most needs its stability.

If the law makes it easier to walk away, more people will walk away. Instead, wherever possible we should be encouraging couples to work through difficulties and offering support to help marriages recover and grow.

When families are stable, children are more secure, outcomes improve, and communities flourish. The government should be investing in policies that promote marriage, rather than hasten its breakdown.

This is about more than legal process, it’s about what kind of society we want to be. If we want to build a culture that values commitment, responsibility, and long-term care, we need laws that uphold those ideals, not weaken them.

James Kennedy, Northern Ireland policy officer, The Christian Institute