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Welfare Reform Bill

My Lords, I add my support and thanks for the changes that have been made and for the acceptance of the centrality of the welfare of children as the main concern of the Bill. I am concerned about violence among some minorities, particularly in cases of forced and polygamous marriages, where the women have very few rights. Women who run away with a child are considered to be dishonouring the entire clan and family. It is not unheard of for gangs of uncles and brothers to murder women who have been abused and beaten and to take the child away. Although these women and children are in a minority, they have rights and must be protected.