Press release from The Iona Institute

New report shows 500pc rise in number of divorces and separations
since 1986

Report also shows that 300,000 children under 18 are now being raised
outside marriage

Changing Irish family sees role of father
diminished

September 5, 2013– The Iona Institute has today published a new report based on Census
2011 called ‘Marriage Breakdown and Family Structure in Ireland’.

The report shows that between 1986 and 2011 there has been
a:

–       500 percent increase in the number of broken marriages in Ireland
(affecting 247,000 adults in total)

–       360 percent increase in the number of cohabiting couples (see note 2
below)

–       119 percent increase in the number of children being raised outside
marriage (see note 3)

–       106 percent increase in the number of single parent
families

Professor Patricia Casey said: “These findings show that the family
in Ireland is changing very rapidly and in ways we should be concerned about.

“According to Census 2011, almost 250,000 Irish adults have separated
or divorced. Whatever the reasons for the breakup of these marriages, there is a
lot of pain behind these figures both for the men and women themselves and for
any children who may be involved.”

She continued: “A figure we should be particularly concerned about is
the 300,000 children under 18 now being raised outside marriage. The great
majority of these are in lone parent, chiefly lone mother families.

“What this highlights is what the changing Irish family in practice
means in many cases, namely an ever growing number of children growing up with
either a semi-involved or uninvolved father, and a growing number of mothers
having to raise their children on their own, or with the help of relatives and
friends to compensate for the absent father.

“At bottom, therefore, the debate about the changing Irish family is
a debate about how highly we value fatherhood and how we can connect more
fathers to their children.”

She concluded: “Historically and in every known society, marriage has
always been our best way of doing this. Marriage connects children to their
fathers more reliably than anything else we know. As marriage weakens in
Ireland, therefore, so does the connection between father and child”.

“We need to have a much more robust and sustained debate about this
very worrying development and policy-makers need to wake up to the fact that
marriage is indeed weakening in Ireland, especially in disadvantaged
communities.”

ENDS