The findings of the British Social Attitudes Survey make interesting reading, particularly in light of the off-again, on-again proposal from the Conservatives to privilege marriage in the tax code. Needless to say, I think it’s a bad idea, but I wonder how much traction it would actually have with people.
Britain is becoming more liberal in its views about how people live their lives
For example, cohabitation is becoming increasingly acceptable. 45% in 2006 agreed that it ‘makes no difference to children whether their parents are married to each other or just living together’, up from 38% in 1998. This is because younger generations, who have more tolerant views, are replacing older, less tolerant, ones. It is also because people’s views are shaped by their own experiences. Even the most traditional generations are becoming more liberal, reflecting their own experiences, or those of their children and grandchildren.
Essentially, an increasingly large population really couldn’t care that much about whether people are married or not. Assuming the survey is accurate and 45% think that ‘makes no difference to children whether their parents are married to each other or just living together’, I assume another chunk of people will fall into the ‘doesn’t make much difference’ and ‘makes a difference but not enough to justify tax breaks’ categories. I wonder, therefore, how many people will be that impressed by the marriage allowance. Of course, the survey doesn’t show how many people would be actively annoyed – like myself – by the proposal.
The other takeaway, for me, is that this looks like an continuing trend. People are going to approve, or at least not disapprove, of what they see their own kith and kin doing; as more people cohabit and don’t marry, it becomes harder to be vocally opposed to the concept. Equally, a lot – if I read the survey correctly – of those who might have (what could be termed) traditional values are, quite literally, a dying breed.
Without wanting to get all mushy, a small bribe would have made precisely no difference to my having married my wife. Indeed, I would be slightly concerned for the longevity of a relationship that could be bought for such a low figure. Of course, no-one argues that; rather, the argument goes that marriage is good and so we should give it an acknowledgement, albeit a token one. I find that idea plain daft. Marriage is already legally privileged – it’s a contract approved by the state – and socially privileged. Moreover, I see no reason why different-sex marriage is different in any meaningful way to same-sex marriage. I might even go so far as to say that the state has no business getting involved in what is, legally, a contract between two people. If we wish to support families, I’d rather the money followed the children that became attached to the existence of a marriage contract.
xD.