What?

NO, NO, NO, Fucking NO! Am I going mad? [my emphasis]

Ministers are planning to give teachers and other third parties powers to protect children from being forced into marriage, according to reports.

The Times newspaper said on Friday that local authorities, women's rights groups and social workers were among the organisations which would be able to take legal action to prevent the marriages.

Under the measures, a third party would apply for a marriage protection order from the courts requiring those involved to stop the marriage.

It would be a criminal offence to breach the order, punishable by a jail sentence or a heavy fine.

A Ministry of Justice document leaked to the paper said: "An application made on a victim's behalf allows the victim to be one step removed from the court proceedings.

"Victims may feel unwilling or unable to take action against the perpetrators who may be members of their family."

Uh...so does the victim have to request help? Could this be used to prevent consensual marriage by an individual who doesn't like it? If the victim has to request assistance, then why not simply allow the victim to directly request a court order and give them anonymity, with the state or other organisations named above then taking up the case after it has been lodged? Surely this would prevent any abuses by ensuring the request has to be lodged by the victim.

As the article reads, it seems the state is adopting the right to interfere in an individual's private life, and then sub-contract that right to other organisations. It sounds very dangerous to me.