State 'should fund weddings to combat loneliness', says report
Married people are the least lonely, but report suggests the poorest are priced out
Less well-off couples should have their weddings subsidised by the state to tackle the national loneliness epidemic, according to a think tank set up by Sir Iain Duncan Smith.
The Centre for Social Justice (CSJ) said the government should offer up to £550 to low-income couples to cover the costs of getting hitched, after their research indicated marriage to be among the best safeguards against loneliness.
The CSJ's "Lonely Nation" report found that 60% of Brits feel lonely at least some of the time, but relationship status had a significant impact. Unmarried couples living together were about half as likely to feel lonely as single people, and "married people were even less likely than cohabitees to be lonely", said The Telegraph.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
The majority of poorer unmarried adults surveyed said that, even if they met the right person, the cost of a wedding would put them off getting married. The average cost of a wedding in 2023 was £20,700, according to a study by wedding planning website Hitched.co.uk.
Josh Nicholson, a researcher at the CSJ, said: "Helping more people to get married by subsidising the bill for those on the lowest incomes offers significant health, social and economic benefits for them and the taxpayer."
The discount would only be available for couples with a relative or absolute low household income, and could impact "an estimated one in five weddings", said The Times. To help ensure relationships were "stable and secure", the CSJ said the £550 subsidy "would be contingent on participating in a marriage preparation course".
The annual cost of such a scheme is estimated at £35 million, "a fraction of the estimated £2.5 billion price of loneliness to employers alone through time taken off for illness, poor mental health and lower productivity", said The Telegraph.
The government said it had already invested more than £80 million in projects tackling the "pressing public health issue" of chronic loneliness.
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Arion McNicoll is a freelance writer at The Week Digital and was previously the UK website’s editor. He has also held senior editorial roles at CNN, The Times and The Sunday Times. Along with his writing work, he co-hosts “Today in History with The Retrospectors”, Rethink Audio’s flagship daily podcast, and is a regular panellist (and occasional stand-in host) on “The Week Unwrapped”. He is also a judge for The Publisher Podcast Awards.
-
'The future of abortion access in many states may come down to who has the final say'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
By Harold Maass, The Week US Published
-
Supreme Court rejects challenge to CFPB
Speed Read The court rejected a conservative-backed challenge to the way the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is funded
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
US makes first Gaza aid delivery from floating pier
Speed Read Israeli restrictions on border crossings have prevented food and supplies from reaching Gaza citizens
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Supreme Court rejects challenge to CFPB
Speed Read The court rejected a conservative-backed challenge to the way the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is funded
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
US makes first Gaza aid delivery from floating pier
Speed Read Israeli restrictions on border crossings have prevented food and supplies from reaching Gaza citizens
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Slovak prime minister 'will survive' after being shot
Speed Read Prime Minister Robert Fico is in a stable but serious condition
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Biden and Trump agree to 2 debates, starting in June
Speed Read CNN will host the first debate on June 27
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
The UK's food poverty crisis
The Explainer Austerity, Brexit, the Covid-19 pandemic and high inflation have led to one of Europe's worst rates of food insecurity
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
Georgia erupts in fury as 'Russian law' passes
Speed Read The "foreign influence" bill is reminiscent of legislation Putin previously passed, with the intent to silence critics
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Maryland primaries tee up competitive Senate race
Speed Read Former Republican governor Larry Hogan will face Democrat Angela Alsobrooks in a bid for US Senate seat
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Cohen ties Trump directly to hush-money scheme
Speed Read Trump's former lawyer Michael Cohen implicates him in testimony about paying off Stormy Daniels
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published