Ten per cent of all marriages in Ireland now involve at least one person who has been divorced, according to figures released today by the Central Statistics Office (CSO). In addition, a majority of middle-aged people who marry, are marrying for a second time.

Young children, often from broken homes, are being recruited by Limerick's criminal gangs, according to a major new study.

The Government's Civil Partnerships Bill, published today, reveals “a deeply flawed and poorly thought-out approach to family policy which undermines the special status of marriage,” according to The Iona Institute.

The Government's Civil Partnerships Bill, published today, reveals “a deeply flawed and poorly thought-out approach to family policy which undermines the special status of marriage,” according to The Iona Institute.

A planned code of conduct for UK teachers risks imposing a “test of professional commitment to secularism”, a leading employment lawyer says.

Christians are still giving generously to charity despite the economic downturn, a new poll shows.

The Church of England is set to attack the BBC in report which says that the corporation is treating Christianity like a ‘freak show’.

The Archbishop of Dublin, Dr Diarmuid Martin is set to meet officials from the Department of Education soon to discuss his proposals to divest control of some Catholic schools, according to a report in the Irish Times.

EU leaders have agreed to provide the legal guarantees, including on abortion, the family and education, being sought by the Irish Government ahead of a planned re-run of the Lisbon Treaty referendum later this year.

A culture of broken relationships is scarring children and damaging society, a leading family judge warned on Tuesday.

Mr Justice Coleridge said the breakdown of families had become an “epidemic” and “a matter of concern for us all, especially where so many children are infected by it”.

To stem the tide, marriage should be affirmed as the “gold standard” of relationships, he said.

Mr Justice Coleridge, who presided over the high-profile divorce of Heather Mills and Sir Paul McCartney, spoke of a “complete and uncontrolled free-for-all where being true to oneself and one’s needs is the only yardstick for controlling behaviour”.

“The re-emergence of a public attitude which is anti-relationship destruction, a new stigma perhaps, could do a lot to stem the flood,” he added.

He called for a national commission drawn from a wide constituency to help tackle the problem, which he said had become a public issue because of its effect on the whole of society.

In a similar speech to family lawyers last year the judge put the social consequences of family breakdown on a par with terrorism and economic decline.

His latest comments came as he addressed a meeting of the Family Holiday Association in Central London last night.

He said: “What I hope in all humility I am drawing attention to is the endless game of ‘musical relationships’ or ‘pass the partner’, in which such a significant portion of the population is engaged in the endless and futile quest for a perfect relationship which will be attained, it is supposed, by landing on the right chair or unwrapping a new and more exciting parcel.”

While Mr Justice Coleridge said marriage was “the most enduring” family set-up and the one in which children “perform the best”, he also said he favoured some rights for co-habiting couples.

In last year’s speech he suggested that enforceable pre-nuptial agreements and reform of divorce law to remove the “fault” element from the process could help tackle the problems associated with family breakdown.

Christian groups and family campaigners have warned against such measures which they fear could encourage even more couples to split.

Unmarried couples are six and a half times more likely than married couples to separate following the birth of a child, although married couples still outnumber co-habiting couples six to one.

Mr Justice Coleridge added last night that the proven success of marriage “is a simple, provable fact which has to be faced, however unpalatable to its detractors”.

He said: “Support for marriage therefore makes pragmatic common sense because it is demonstrably in the public interest and ultimately saves money.”

The Department for Children, Schools and Families responded to Mr Justice Coleridge’s speech by affirming the importance of “strong family relationships” to the “wellbeing” of society.

A spokesman added: “That is why the government is committed to doing more to support parents and children experiencing family breakdown and to provide preventative support to help families maintain strong, stable relationships.”

However, last year deputy Labour leader Harriet Harman reportedly stated her view that marriage had “little relevance in public policy”.

Conservative leader David Cameron has promised that if his party gains power at the next election it will support marriage through changes to the tax system, though he says same-sex unions will also benefit.

Parental choice “must be at the heart of education policy”, according to Fine Gael's education spokesperson Brian Hayes. Speaking to the Irish Catholic newspaper, Mr Hayes said that there should be no “one-size-fits-all approach to educational provision”.

Half the children born outside wedlock in the third quarter of last year were to cohabiting couples, new figures show.

The right of parents to send their children to faith schools is recognised in the Constitution and cannot be brushed aside, the Archbishop of Dublin, Dr Diarmuid Martin, has said.

Guarantees protecting the Irish Constitution as regards family, abortion and education from aspects of the Lisbon Treaty, plus the accompanying Charter of Fundamental Rights, have been published by the Government ahead of a second referendum in the autumn.

If secularist opponents of faith schools think religion is “a busted flush” they should stop being afraid of its influence, writes the editor of the Times Educational Supplement (TES).

Ninety five per cent of Irish people still believe in God, according to a study launched in Maynooth this week.

Senator Rónán Mullen has challenged Ireland's EU partners to be true to their word and ensure that Ireland receives guarantees on family law and the right to life ahead of a second referendum on the Lisbon Treaty.

Ireland's Catholic bishops have reiterated their commitment to providing “Catholic schools to cater for the needs of parents who wish their children to have a Catholic education”.

Socialist parties across Europe were dealt a serious blow in European Parliament elections at the weekend, as the Socialist group in the parliament, the PSE, lost 20 MEPs throughout the EU.

A Catholic mother in the UK is taking legal advice after Brighton and Hove Council arranged to place her ten-year-old son with a homosexual foster couple.