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Since 1965 the crude marriage rate in the EU-28 has declined by close to 50%. And according to Eurofound the percentage of people aged 18-30 who were still living with their parents had risen to about 48%. Obviously, there is a clear link between these two figures. And a much clearer link needs to be built with the economic crisis since 2008. It is also equally undeniable that marriage has become less important from a religious and social perspective. And legal alternatives to marriage like registered partnership have become widespread and very popular. As a result the number of wedding has fallen to historic lows in particular in Italy, Spain, France and Poland. In Italy there were fewer than 200,000 marriages in 2014, the lowest number since the 1st World War (Instat)! The lack of jobs or low paid jobs for young people in most European countries and the related economic and social impact on this age group remain the most relevant explanations for the constant drop in marriages.

Mo Tailland / 13th November 2015

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