By Kim Choe
Romance may blossom for many this Valentines Day, but statistics show that fewer relationships are being formalised.
The number of people getting married in New Zealand has hit a historic low and the trend looks set to continue downwards.
Morgan Jones and Janet Humphris have been together for nearly 12 years. They have a two-and-a-half-year-old son and no plans to get married.
“We've got Owen, and we've got a house, and we've got all sorts of other things as well. And we're committed to each other and it just doesn't seem like we need the piece of paper to prove it,” says Mrs Humphris.
The couple are just one of a growing number in New Zealand who are opting not to wed.
After peaking in 1971 at 27,000, marriages fell to a historic low in 2010, with just 20,900 couples tying the knot.
Early figures for last year indicate that number will fall even further, and could drop below 20,000 for the first time.
Counsellor Shona Harvey says although it's difficult to pinpoint why overall marriage rates are falling, it's definitely a sign of the times.
“Since it has become more socially acceptable not to get married, people don't feel they need the formal recognition of marriage so much these days,” she says.
“They have their relationship, they're committed to their relationship, so what is the point of the extra expense to getting married. There's no legal difference to whether a couple are married or not - it's recognised as having the same sort of legal status.”
The introduction of civil unions in 2005 doesn't seem to have affected marriage numbers either. Figures show that opposite-sex civil unions have fluctuated slightly but are not trending upwards. The same is true of same-sex couples, but because they can't get married, that doesn't have an affect on marriage figures. Morgan Jones says he'd like to see same-sex couples able to marry and that the decision should come down to the couple's values.
“We've got friends who are married, friends who're in civil unions, and friends who're just long-term couples like us. I think it's just whatever's important to the couple,” he says.
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