Ellen Greaves, of the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS), told a conference in late July that it is the character traits of people who choose to get married — rather than marriage itself — which benefits children.
She suggested that policies that encourage marriage, like marriage tax breaks, would have a small impact on children’s development.
But the Coalition for Marriage strongly criticised the remarks. Campaign Director Colin Hart said: ‘This is metropolitan elitist twaddle which will say anything to avoid the blindingly obvious: children do best with a married mum and dad. The conclusions of the IFS are another slap in the face for millions of ordinary married couples who have just been told that their commitment and faithfulness is nice, but ultimately of no value to future generations’.
