Poland chooses pro-family President

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Poland has elected a pro-family president, Karol Nawrocki. I chat to Olivier Bault, Communications Director at the Ordo Iuris Institute for Legal Culture, about what this means for marriage and the family. Poland already gives a large income tax break to mothers and fathers of four or more children within set thresholds. Watch our full interview here.

Poland treats marriage as the union of one man and one woman in its Constitution. This gives policymakers a clear anchor for family policy. In our discussion, Olivier explains how this constitutional clarity protects children and strengthens society, and why redefining marriage unravels that clarity.

He sets out what the new President means for marriage policy. Olivier outlines a plan to further increase and extend tax benefits to parents with two or more children, submitted as a Presidential Bill to parliament. Nawrocki will also block progressive legislation proposed by the Government. The Presidency, he explains, carries a veto that the current Sejm – the lower house of Poland’s Parliament – cannot override without three fifths. He says Nawrocki will not sign laws that bring civil partnerships, open to same-sex couples, into law. Olivier explains that the new President’s position is a stalemate with Parliament, but that this is better than capitulation on moral truth.

The battle for the classroom is discussed too. Olivier details a new “health education” class that wraps in sex education with gender-identity content. Parents can opt out by written declaration. His point is plain. Parental rights need defending in law and in practice.

Turning to the UK, the record is a cautionary tale. Parliament broadened legal parenthood routes in 2002 (Adoption and Children Act 2002), created civil partnerships in 2004 (Civil Partnership Act 2004), widened parental routes again in 2008 (Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 2008), and then redefined marriage in 2013 (Marriage [Same Sex Couples] Act 2013). At present, Poland’s constitutional definition and a President with a veto block that sequence.

At C4M our focus is real marriage because it gives children their best start in life, and gives the nation a more hopeful future. Poland shows that law can back the truth about marriage and that policy can reward responsibility. The challenge now is to renew a marriage culture in the UK with clear laws, parental rights and practical support for young couples. That is a positive policy aim, and one that C4M believe is definitely attainable.