Children's Commissioner Helen D'Amato said today that she is concerned that the introduction of divorce will change the way children perceive marriage.

Speaking during a meeting with the anti-divorce movement, she said she did not believe divorce would solve problems for children from broken families.

The issue was complex and the reality was that children from broken marriages suffered and it did not make a difference whether the cause was separation, annulment or divorce. She knew of separated parents who did their utmost to try and maintain some form of stability for their children, she said."

Mrs D'Amato said she believed children were best raised in a family environment of stability as was also recognised by the UN. Studies showed that children who lived in their first family had a 10 per cent chance of developing mental health problems while those living with their second family had a 25 to 30 per cent chance.

"As a country we must work to reduce separation and not to give a solution to adults that might not be the best for our children. Divorce might be a solution for some adults but, will it benefit children?," she said.

Arthur Galea Salamone, from the anti-divorce movement, urged voters in the 28 May referendum to keep children in mind when voting on the introduction of divorce.

He criticised the Yes campaign for using children in their billboards that also carried offensive language. The misleading billboards, he said, gave the wrong impression that divorce would decrease the rate of children born outside marriage.

The Office of the Children's Commissioner said that the study on mental health which was mentioned by Mrs D'Amato was carried out by Dr. Joan B. Kelly (a Clinical Psychologist who forms part of the American Psychological Association) and Prof. Robert E. Emery (Prof of Psychology and the Director of the Centre for Children, Families and the Law at the University of Virginia).

The study states that 10% of children coming from families without divorce are at risk of having mental health problems, while  for children coming from families who have gone through the process of divorce, the risk increases to 25%.