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Curch claims traditional family unit under threat. Divorce rates rise 19%. Number of children born out of wedlock heads towards 50%

Date: 2007-03-09

CHURCH and family groups expressed fear for children growing up in broken homes yesterday after figures revealed a soaring divorce rate, a fall in the number of marriages and the highest ever number of children born out of wedlock.

The introduction of "quickie" divorce laws led to a 19 per cent rise in the number of divorces last year, to more than 13,000.

Meanwhile, the number of people marrying fell by three per cent and the proportion of children born to unmarried parents peaked at 48 per cent.

Church and family groups said the figures reflected an "unhealthy society" that was having an increasingly negative effect on children.

However, the Executive insisted the sudden rise in divorce was solely due to the law change and insisted the institution of marriage remained safe.

The figures, released yesterday by Duncan McNiven, the registrar general, showed 13,013 people divorced last year, the highest number in more than a decade. He attributed the increase to "quickie divorce" laws, introduced last spring,

which halved the time couples need to wait for approval of an uncontested divorce from two years to one. The waiting time for a contested divorce has dropped from five years to two.

Mr McNiven said: "We cannot predict future divorce numbers. But I would expect the number of divorces to fall once this temporary surge is past."

In comparison to the ten-year high in divorce rates, the number of marriages was the fifth lowest since Victorian times, at 29,896.

Joseph Devine, the bishop of Motherwell, said the figures showed a disintegration of the family. "It is a sign of the times, and socially unhealthy times at that," he said.

"Clearly, recent legislation making divorce easier and quicker has had an impact. But so long as government fails to attach the importance it should to the institutions of marriage and the traditional family, society, and children in particular, will pay the price."

Most divorces are by couples aged between 35 and 45 and happen after five to ten years of marriage. The main reason is the couple living apart for some years, followed by behaviour, adultery and desertion.

Religious groups warned the laws would lead to an increase in the rate of couples separating.

Morag Mylne, convener of the Church of Scotland church and society council, said a breakdown in the sanctity of marriage would damage society.

"If marriage is not embraced and recognised, that is something that naturally concerns the Church and should concern all of society," she said.

The Catholic Church warned children could be damaged by the rise in divorce.

A spokesman added: "The latest figures reveal an alarming change in the social landscape. They show half of Scotland's children are born outside the stability of marriage. Society needs to ask itself if this is wise, given that all the indicators show children do better in terms of health, education and employment prospects when brought up in a stable family environment."

Last year the proportion of children born to unmarried parents rose to a record 47.7 per cent at 26,584 children.

Daniel Boucher, of Christian Group Care, feared Scotland would be one of the few countries in Europe with more than half of children born out of wedlock.

"Unless government takes proper steps to invest in marriage, the rate will go over 50 per cent and the state will reap the consequences in 10 to 15 years' time."

The Executive insisted the figures reflected the backlog of couples who were able to divorce more quickly when the new laws came in, rather than more failing marriages.

A spokesman insisted marriage was being supported by current government reforms.

He said: "Nothing in the family law reforms undermines the place of marriage in our society - and neither has divorce become easy. But we now have laws that minimise conflict and the impact on children when family relationships break down."

Mike Reid, acting director of Family Mediation Scotland, has seen an increase in the number of couples coming in since the change in the law, which he said increased support for families wanting to resolve child custody and other issues out of court.

Is a nuclear family best?

No

BEING brought up by unmarried parents is not necessarily a bad thing.

Research shows that it is parents' economic situation and their relationship with the child that is more important.

Furthermore, many unmarried parents stick together for life.

I think it is a bit misleading to think parents splitting up must be a total disaster for the child.

I think it is one of a number of difficulties young people can face.

What is important is supporting children through these difficulties rather than endless criticism of their parents if they split up.

In the future, more children are likely to be born to unmarried parents than married parents, but this does not need to be negative.

Society needs to concentrate on the welfare of the children rather than the institution of marriage. We need to adjust rather than harking back to a time when children were usually brought up by married parents.

As far as the children are concerned, the important thing to look at is the quality of the relationships, not the number of family members who are there.

Sue Robertson is the director of One Parent Families Scotland.

Yes

A SYSTEM that allows for swift, no-fault divorces will inevitably lead people to view marriage as merely a temporary contract rather than the lifelong commitment that it is.

Lower expectations combined with an easy escape route will result in couples rushing to the divorce courts rather than seeking to work through their problems.

High divorce rates are bad news for society.

Divorce is not only a personal tragedy for both parties involved, but it also has far-reaching consequences that extend way beyond the couple themselves.

We have not taken seriously enough the extent to which children are negatively affected by their parents' divorce.

The current divorce laws are militating against the commitment, stability and permanence that adults and children long for, and on which a prosperous society depends.

In the future, the number of children born to unmarried couples may increase even further.

That will make Britain one of the few countries in Europe with more children born out of wedlock than in married couples.

That is a matter of concern as, according to the research, children do better being brought up in the traditional family unit.

Norman Wells, is the director of the Family Education Trust.

Five couples tell their stories

• Dispute over baby
PAUL, 26, and Linda, 24, had been married four years. Linda really wanted to start a family, but Paul didn't feel ready. Without telling Paul, Linda stopped taking her contraceptive pill and became pregnant. Paul was furious and said he would never be able to trust her again. They divorced in 2005 and their baby, Chloe, was born later that year.

Now, Paul says: "Linda and I are seeing a lot of each other because of Chloe, and I don't think either of us can rule out the possibility that we might get back together, not just for Chloe's sake, but because we've had the chance to grow up a bit more."

• 'The last to know'
MARGARET'S divorce happened ten years ago, when she was 56. She is still bitter and sad. "I felt - actually still feel - like an idiot. The old saying 'the wife's the last one to know' could have been written for me. Apparently a lot of my friends knew, and probably all of his."

Her husband, Bill, was a bank manager in Glasgow and their two children had left home. She was looking forward to a comfortable retirement on his pension - until he told her he was having an affair with his secretary and moved out. "I'll never forgive them," Margaret says.

• 'Long hours lead to drift'
Moira, 32, and Colin, 33, married young and did part of their growing up with their three children. Colin spent more time at work than Moira liked. "I wanted the kids to have the best of everything, and Moira couldn't understand that I sometimes couldn't leave at 5pm," he says. Tensions grew, and he found a sympathetic ear at work. When Colin's colleague, Heather, became pregnant, Colin was forced to confess. The couple divorced shortly after.

• 'We split for boys' sake'
John, 38 and Sandra, 39, have two sons, Harry, eight and Mark, two, and have been divorced just over a year. Although their relationship was troubled for several years after Harry was born, both had tried hard to hold things together, even hoping a second baby would help.

"I didn't believe it was something we couldn't deal with," said Sandra. "But by the time Mark was a year old, we were just managing to tolerate each other in front of the boys. It wasn't easy to decide that we really had to separate, as much for the boys' sake as for our own."

• 'Nothing left to say'
Sue, 40 and Mike, 39 were engaged at university. After graduating, Mike became a successful architect. Sue, though, was unhappy. 'By the time [our girls] were in senior school, I began to feel useless. I turned into a needy person." Mike says: "I thought we had stopped being able to communicate, but I was so busy that I didn't have the time to work at it. Things calmed down a bit at work a couple of years ago, but by then we didn't have anything to say to each other."





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