Since they started offering them in 2005, England and Wales has registered 42,778 civil partnerships. And a new study by the Office of National Statistics shows that over the last four years, 5.5 percent of marriages have ended in divorce while only to 2.5 percent of civil partnerships ended in dissolution. This suggests that same-sex civil partnerships usually last longer than heterosexual marriages… but there’s a catch.
The data could be distorted by the possibility that many of the first couples to get civil unions in 2005 had already been together for a long time. Other findings: These days 38 percent of English and Welsh people call homosexuality “always or mostly wrong” compared the the 75 percent who said the same thing in 1987. Also, women and young people support full marriage equality and gay adoption while 50 percent of straight men and the majority of people over 70 do not.
Wait, you mean old, crotchety people don’t support LGBT rights… still?
Image via katerha
Queer Supremacist
No wonder the breeder bigots are against us. They’re jealous of us.
the crustybastard
In England a mere 2.5 or 5.5% of couples split up after making it official?
That’s astonishing.
ChrisC
Angus-reid says that 78% of people in The UK support LGBT people getting legal recognition, and that was in 2009. Also, if the Prime Minister of The UK, who is a member of The Conservitive Party, supports Marriage Equality, I find it unlikely that 38& of people in England & Wales think that homosexuality is “wrong”.
Daniel Villarreal
@the crustybastard: Well, within the four years (2005-2009)
ron
Proof that their are lies, damned lies and statistics. Who do you think you’re fooling?
the crustybastard
@Daniel Villarreal:
OIC. Duh.
Carl
@ron: Jealous? These are early figures that, as the article states, don’t consider a number of potential factors. I think we’ll eventually see, over the next few years, the rates equalise.
Don
@Carl: You “think” we’ll see … the rates equalise. What facts or data do you have to support your “thinking”?
Steve
Some of these numbers don’t seem quite right to me. It doesn’t seem right that only 5.5 percent of marriages would end in divorce during a 4 year period. Perhaps that is right, it just seems odd to me. The study authors do present a hypothesis as to why the rate is lower for gay couples, and that hypothesis does seem to make sense. Clearly, more research is needed in that area, over a longer period of time.
The 38 percent figure for people who say that homosexuality is “always or mostly wrong”, seems about right. Of course, such things depend on how you ask the question, and how you select the subjects for the study. Even if there was some question bias, the important result agrees with others that the trend moving in our favor. And, the percentages have moved to a region that statisticians would call “significant”, and that politicians would call “landslide.”
Robert in NYC
This is going to make it a lot easier for the conservative government to make marriage equality a reality once the consultation for it begins in March 2012. Who would have thought a conservative government, probably the first, would endorse it by its own volition? Truly amazing. We can only dream of that happening in the U.S. Not even the democrats have endorsed it, bad economy or not. Hardly an excuse now not to. UK gays have also been able to sponsor their foreign born partners for more than a decade and not necessarily having to be in a civil partnership as long as they can demonstrate dependency on one another for at least 2 years. We’re nowhere on that one either.
No Homo
I think it is because gay people are more realistic we would leave our husbands if they fuck someone else because we want to fuck other guys too.LOL
skzip888
I assume a lower percentage get divorced because a lower percentage of self-centered flakes wander into marriage in the first place.
The lions share of Heterosexual couples seem to feel entitled to the perks and elevation of social status that come with being recognized as a “couple” and seem to forget it means having a roommate with diametrically-opposed gender values for the next fifty years.
One of the perks of being a non-reproducing sexual minority is that kids and marriage are actually a choice and not an obligation. Daytime talk shows and nagging mothers in law aren’t pressuring you to “take the next step.”
Sally
Did you know that same sex is killing each other off? Fact!!! According to the medical profession, and that is never mentioned!
Lefty
@Sally: Did you know apples scream when they is eaten? Fact!!! According to the apple community, and that is never mentioned!
Pitou
@Sally: A letter from above – “Did you know that everytime the mush in your cranium swishes around a bit the little baby jesus cries and an angel loses its wings? Fact!!! According to biblical passages, and that is never mentioned! Please stop swishing. Thank you, God”
Little Kiwi
well, a simple reality is that many straight people spend their lives thinking about their WEDDING and not their MARRIAGE.
there’s a whole lot more to marriage than that “one special day”
the crustybastard
@Sally:
Gosh, I wouldn’t have believed that was an actual “fact” until you added that third exclamation point.
Obviously, every statement followed by two or more pieces of superfluous punctuation is more trustworthy than any statement supported by mere rational observation, actual empirical evidence or a dumb ol’ citation to a peer-reviewed journal.
You must be a genius!!!!!!!!!!