I was struck this week by Sir Paul Coleridge’s comments on marriage.
It’s a subject about which, as a High Court judge in the family courts division, he knows a great deal
Sir Paul says that 3.8 million children are caught up in the family justice system every year.
He attributes this huge number to the ease of divorce, which he says, is easier than getting a driving licence.
He describes family breakdown as one of the “most destructive scourges of our time,” and says it damages children, parents and society.
His charity, the Marriage Foundation, aims to promote marriage as the “gold standard” of relationships.
But it faces an uphill struggle.
Research released this week shows Britain has the highest divorce rate in the EU, at 38.8 per cent.
Not surprisingly, there is now a trend away from marriage in this country.
Government figures show marriage rates have halved in 40 years.
But the birth rate continues to rise, with 45 per cent of births last year outside marriage.
When evidence shows that children do best in two parent families and even better, when those parents are married, these figures are a cause for deep concern.
Sir Paul says that the breakdown of marriage and its impact on society affect 99.9 per cent of the population.
He questions the Government’s commitment to gay marriage, which he describes as a “minority issue” affecting only 0.1 per cent of the population.
He says that the Government should be focusing on supporting marriage, during this “crisis of family breakdown.”
I agree with him.
In 2010, the Conservative manifesto promised tax breaks for married couples.
Now, we’re told we might see them in next year’s budget.
I fervently hope so.
Support for married couples, however modest, would be an acknowledgement of how important they still are to a happy, healthy society.