HL Deb 10 January 2000 vol 608 c74WA
Lord Swinfen

asked Her Majesty's Government:

What is the incidence of marriage break-up in the Army compared to the rest of the population. [HL246]

Baroness Symons of Vernham Dean

The Army does not hold centrally figures on the incidence of marriage break-up. Various changes in marital status are recorded on an individual's personal file to reflect separation, the status of dependent children, and the stages of divorce. To compare this information with statistical data on the wider population would require analysis of individual files and against an agreed definition of marital break-up. This could only be achieved at disproportionate cost.