Lock up your partner, or you’ll lose them to the sales: so says a recent survey for everydaysale.co.uk. Nearly one fifth (19%) of the British public would pass up sex with their partner in favour of a sale at their favourite shop. And women are the more culpable: 26% of women would satisfy their appetite for shopping sales over sex. Reinforcing the stereotype, only 11% of men would do the same. But spare a thought for some poor soon-to-be singles; four percent of the British public see the cancellation of a shopping trip as sufficient reason to break up with a partner.
And the state of play for relationships only gets worse, as it’s not only shopping that drives partners apart – 38% of the total believe poor hygiene in a significant other constitutes a ‘dumpable’ offence, rising to 45% among the 18-24 year olds, and 43% among British females across all age groups.
The gender divide is felt especially in attitudes towards pornography. 22% of the female population see the discovery of a secret porn stash as an offence worthy of a swift dispatch, compared to only three percent of men.
Perhaps most interesting is how people react to discovering that their partner has been sending saucy photos or texts to somebody else (Ashley Cole, we mean you). 55% of the British public, along with Cheryl, it would seem, believe that this offence is sufficient to merit a break-up. In the 18 to 24 and 25 to 34 age groups, this climbs to 70% and 71% respectively. For the over 55s, the story is quite different – only 40% believe this would be cause for a break-up.
With so many reasons to dump or be dumped, not to mention having to constantly compete with the sales and shopping opportunities, one may be forgiven for wondering if there’s any chance of maintaining a relationship at all.
For survey details and results, please click here
