Births outside wedlock now the majority in 8 EU countries

THE number of babies born outside marriage is now higher than the number born to married couples in several European countries, figures show.

In 2016 43 per cent of children across the EU’s 27 countries were born to unmarried mothers, according to the EU statistics arm Eurostat.

But in eight countries, including France, the Netherlands, Denmark, Sweden and Portugal, more than half of women give birth outside of marriage.

It comes after figures last month showed British births outside marriage had reached a record level.

In England and Wales last year 48.1 per cent of babies were born to single or cohabiting parents – meaning Britain may soon join the ranks of European countries where unmarried mothers are in the majority.

France has the lowest rate of married new parents, with just over four in ten babies now born in wedlock. The other three countries with a majority of births outside marriage are Bulgaria, Slovenia and Estonia. By comparison, Germany has just 35.5 per cent of babies born to unmarried parents.