Responding to the welcome news that pop singer Taylor Swift and her American football boyfriend, Travis Kelce, have announced their engagement, Harry Benson, Marriage Foundation’s Research Director commented: “This is wonderful news for the happy couple and further proof, if it were needed that the vast majority of young people aspire to marry. Indeed, when we asked over 2,000 young people (18 – 30 years old) who were in a relationship, nearly nine in 10 (87 per cent) said they wanted to marry, including a majority of those in every socioeconomic group and those who had met their partner using so-called hook apps such as Tinder and Grindr. But there is a problem, while the richest couples still get married, (up to eight in 10), less than half of the poorest do and for the bottom quintile, it could be as low as one in five.
“This creates a deeply troubling marriage gap that means, with marriage increasing becoming the preserve of the middle and upper classes, with all the problems associated with this. Regardless of wealth, the psychology behind marriage - the desire to find reliable love, love we can trust, is what most couples want. Marriage provides this by each person committing to a life together and then celebrating this commitment in front of their friends and family.
“So, as we celebrate this wonderful news of the engagement of Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce, and look forward to their wedding, we would urge policy makers here in the UK to redouble their efforts to extend the benefits of marriage to all couples, regardless of wealth.”
ENDS
About Marriage Foundation
Marriage Foundation was founded in 2012 by Sir Paul Coleridge, a High Court judge who was moved by his personal experience in 40 years as a barrister and judge specialising in family law. The think tank seeks to improve public understanding of marriage and to reduce the numbers of people drawn into the family justice system – some 500,000 children and adults each year. It has established itself as a leading voice on marriage issues in the UK.
Sir Paul Coleridge, Harry Benson and Michaela Hyde from the Marriage Foundation are available for comment and for interviews linked to these new findings.