It can be predicted that there will shortly be a sharp increase in the number of marriages in the UK. When this happens, the press will almost certainly report that the "Kate and Will factor" must be the cause of the increase.
On last week's More or Less (Radio 4) it was explained that a similar phenomenon followed the marriage of David and Victoria Beckham with Posh and Becks being credited for causing a brief reversal in the long term decline of marriage.
A more likely explanation, however, is that shortly after the marriage of David and Victoria Beckham, the government announced a clampdown on "sham marriages" and people rushed to get married before the new regulations came into force. This legislation has now been ruled illegal under the Human Rights Act and the government will be shortly forced to lift the regulations, which can be expected to lead to an increase in marriages.
So any increase in marriage will probably have more to do with people seeking to beat the immigration rules rather than any royal inspiration.
Listen to More or Less:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b010mwbt#synopsis
Wednesday, 4 May 2011
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