Comparative
Marriage and Divorce rates:
UK, Europe
and the USA
During the last
half a century in Britain, there has been a significant decline in the number
of marriages and also a considerable increase in the number of divorces. This
trend has been mirrored throughout continental Europe; first in the North, but
now also in the West and South. The recurring theme of fewer marriages and
more divorces has also been characteristic of the United States over the same
time period, although in the USA there has not been as much fluctuation in the
statistics as there has been in the UK.
The UK
In 1950, there were 408,000 marriages in the UK. The peak number of marriages
was in 1972 when there were 480,000 marriages, largely as a result of the
post-war baby boom. This number then declined over subsequent years until
1999, when there was a low of 301,000 marriages. A telling statistic that
underlines the decline in marriages in the UK is that in 2000 the number of
first marriages was at only 180,000 in stark contrast to almost 390,000 first
marriages during 1970.
Between 2001 and 2002 there was a further increase in the number of divorces.
The number of divorces granted in the UK in 2002 was 160,000. In 1961 the
figure was just 27,000. The increasing trend in divorce can be clearly traced
back to the 1960’s. The 1961 rate of 27,000 divorces doubled to 56,000 by
1969, and had again doubled to 125,000 divorces by 1972. The huge increase in
divorces has been largely attributed to the introduction of the Divorce Reform
Act of 1969.
The EU
As for the rest of the EU, declining marriage rates and increased divorce
rates have also been the norm. The marriage rate in the UK during the year
2000 was close to the EU average at 5.1 marriages for every 1,000 people.
Denmark had the highest at a rate of 6.6 and Sweden was the lowest at 4.0. The
2000 divorce rate in the UK was above the EU average of 1.9 divorces per 1,000
people, with 2.6 divorces per 1,000. Belgium had the highest divorce rate at
2.9 per 1,000 people, and Italy and the Republic of Ireland the lowest rate at
0.7.
The USA
Both marriage and divorce rates in the United States are higher than in the UK
and Europe. There were 1,163,000 divorces granted in 1997, which translates to
a rate of 4.3 divorces per 1,000 people. The National Centre for Health
Statistics recorded in 1997 that there were 2,384,000 marriages, which is
equivalent to 8.9 marriages per 1,000 people.
Reasons
for Divorce
Common demographic factors identified for couples in the UK as most likely to
divorce have included: marrying younger than the average age of marriage,
having a pre-marital birth, job stress, or having previously been divorced.
The average length of marriage for UK divorces granted in 2002 was 11 years,
with women most frequently relying on the fact of unreasonable behaviour and
men most frequently relying on 2 years separation and consent.
Given the
statistical evidence, it can be concluded that marriage is less common than
ever in the UK and also that divorce rates are not far off the record number
they reached in the early 1990’s. Currently the marriage and divorce rate
trends show no sign of abating. The reasons for divorce vary but the general
trend is still one of fewer marriages coupled with higher divorce rates.
For more information
please contact:
Maeve
O'Higgins
Silverman Sherliker LLP
SOLICITORS
7 Bath Place
London EC2A 3DR
Tel: 020 7749 2700
