UK Gay and Bisexual Men More Likely to Marry Later in Life
Same-sex couples are more likely to marry later in life than opposite-sex couples, according to new data.
The Office of National Statistics commissioned a four-part series on young people in the UK, entitled Being 18 in 2018.
The series focuses on 18-year-olds since the start of the millennium.
In the UK, people can marry as soon as they turn 18. But since 1970, couples are waiting longer on average to tie the knot.
Single women marrying men are more likely to marry the youngest.
For example, the average age for women marrying men in 1970 was around 22 years old. For men marrying women, it was around 24 years old.
But since the introduction of same-sex marriage in the UK in 2014, we now have data on same-sex marriages.
In 2014, the average age for women marrying men jumped to 31, with men marrying women at 33.
But the average age of women marrying women was 35 and men marrying men was 38.
This may be because older LGBTI people, who couldn’t marry before, can now tie the knot.
In 2015, the average age of men marrying men jumped up to almost 40.
The data also reveals 18-year-olds today are more likely to live two years longer than 18-year-olds in 2000.
It also states drinking and smoking seem to be in decline for 18-year-olds today.