A report from the think-tank, The Marriage Foundation, claims to have exploded the myth about a link between divorce and recession.

Relationship charities have previously claimed that more married couples break up during an economic downturn because of the strain of financial anxiety putting pressure on relationships.

Arguing the exact opposite, lawyers have suggested recessions keep couples together, as they cannot afford to go through expensive divorce procedures and the cost of buying a second house.

Statisticians at the ONS have failed to make sense of the conflicting arguments. They have simply stated that it is too early to say whether the current fall in divorce rates will continue.

However research carried out by Harry Benson of The Marriage Foundation apparently shows that neither side can claim to have reached a valid conclusion because the link simply does not exist.

“For every year since the 1970s – and across every duration of marriage, from ‘newlyweds’ through to ‘silver surfers’ – divorce rates have almost always stayed within plus or minus 10% of the previous year’s figure.

“There is no evidence whatsoever to link either economic growth or stock market performance with changes in divorce rates.”

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