PETER HITCHENS: Marriage is less binding than a car lease... and it's children who suffer

This is Peter Hitchens��� Mail on Sunday column

Since last Wednesday, when ���no-fault��� divorce became law south of the border (Scotland did this in 2006), civil marriage in England has become little more than a middle-class foible. 

Families are temporary arrangements, easily scattered. Why should most people bother with a ���commitment��� so readily torn up that it isn���t worth the paper it���s scribbled on?

I say civil marriage because I believe there are still couples from all layers ...