RESUMO
The Civil Partnership Act 2004, which came into force in December 2005 allowing same-sex couples in the UK to register their relationship for the first time, celebrated its fifth anniversary in December 2010. This article examines civil partnership in England and Wales, five years on from its introduction. The characteristics of those forming civil partnerships between 2005 and 2010 including age, sex and previous marital/civil partnership status are examined. These are then compared with the characteristics of those marrying over the same period. Further comparisons are also made between civil partnership dissolutions and divorce. The article presents estimates of the number of people currently in civil partnerships and children of civil partners. Finally the article examines attitudes towards same-sex and civil partner couples both in the UK and in other countries across Europe.
Assuntos
Adoção/legislação & jurisprudência , Direitos Civis/tendências , Características da Família , Parceiros Sexuais , Mudança Social , Adolescente , Adulto , Distribuição por Idade , Idoso , Direitos Civis/legislação & jurisprudência , Divórcio/legislação & jurisprudência , Divórcio/tendências , Inglaterra , Feminino , Homossexualidade , Humanos , Masculino , Casamento/legislação & jurisprudência , Casamento/tendências , Pessoa de Meia-Idade , Opinião Pública , Distribuição por Sexo , País de Gales , Adulto JovemRESUMO
This article outlines the main features of the population of England and Wales in 2005. Where 2005 figures have not yet been published, data for 2004 are given.