London Statistics

http://www.statistics.gov.uk/census2001/profiles/H-A.asp#ethnic



http://www.bbc.co.uk/relationships/tv_and_radio/love_map/ukmaplove_london.shtml

"In 1991 we drew a map of the country, and London was the only place where the majority of working age people were not married. There wasn't another city, town or village like it," says Daniel Dorling Professor of Human Geography at Sheffield University, "Now, the rest of the country is following in London's footsteps, but they will never catch up with London."Trying to work out what the capital will be like in 20 to 30 years is near to impossible."

"Almost every young graduate wants to work in London. Now there are three to four young people sharing a flat where there used to be two. Such crowding has an effect on human relationships. Housing is not keeping pace with needs in London; the cost of homes is rising and the consequence among the graduates who migrate will be an even further delay in having children," predicts Dorling.

There is a higher proportion of single people living in London than anywhere else in the UK. Around half the London population between 20 and 59 years are single, with the widest difference between London and elsewhere among 45- to 60-year-olds. There are twice as many single people in this age group in London than in the rest of the UK.

London is also unusual because 70 per cent of marriages are the first for both partners; elsewhere in the UK the average is nearer 50 per cent.

Religious weddings in London are a rarity, with the vast majority, 81 per cent, being civil ceremonies. This compares with 68 per cent for the rest of the UK.

While cohabiting with no children is most common in London, accounting for nine per cent of the population, cohabiting with children, especially when both parents work, is becoming rarer in London.

The City of London is second only to Brighton in the percentage of same-sex couples declared by people on their Census returns (1.2 per cent and 1.1 per cent respectively). Eleven other London boroughs are included in the top 20 places for same-sex couples.

A Times poll revealed that a third of all love cheats meet their lovers through work. As the biggest centre of employment this makes the likelihood of infidelity greater in London, said to be the affairs capital of the UK, than in many other places.

Lone-parent households have become the fourth most common type of household in the UK and they are most numerous in London, mainly in the east.