Inverness tops poll of cheats on illicit affairs website

INVERNESS is a hotbed of affairs, according to a new index which ranks it as the most unfaithful city in Scotland.

The results are based on this year’s infidelity index, drawn up using data from illicitencounters.com – a dating website for married people who want to cheat on their partners. A total of 3806 people in Inverness are signed up to the dating website – representing six per cent of the population who could potentially be having affairs via the site.

More city men are on the website but only just, with 2217 men registered and 1589 women.

The infidelity index ranks all cities in the UK based on the percentage of their adult population on the website.

Glasgow has 3301 active members on Illicit Encounters, less than one per cent, making it Scotland’s most monogomous city.

A spokesman for the dating website said it was probably just a snapshot of the infidelity actually going on in Inverness.

"Obviously there are more people out there cheating on their partners in Inverness," he said. "These numbers only show the people using our website to do so. There will be plenty of people in Inverness who haven’t even heard of it.

"I don’t know enough about Inverness to explain why the number is so high, but I believe it is not very affluent and in areas like that, people might want a divorce but can’t afford it, or they might not want to hurt their children."

Dating websites are now incredibly popular although most don’t encourage cheating on your partner. Illicit Encounters describes its website as a place to meet people for romance outside of their current relationship.

Inverness’s ranking as Scotland’s most unfaithful city has shocked many in the community.

Reverend Fiona Smith, of Ness Bank Church, told the Highland News she does not think the statistics are a true representation of the city.

"I genuinely wouldn’t say that Inverness is a place of such moral depravity," she said. "What I do find astonishing is that I would have thought people in their 30s or 40s would be too busy to do such things.

"If people are using these dating sites then it shows a deep unhappiness.

"Statistics are statistics and I would not believe them all or draw too many conclusions from them."

Inverness confidence coach Sophia Lennox trained in marriage education and divorce prevention following her divorce from her husband, who had been unfaithful.

"It’s disappointing to see Inverness named the most unfaithful city in Scotland, particularly when registering on a website shows clear intent," she said. "I know first-hand the hurt and long-term effects infidelity causes.

"Anyone looking to affair-proof their marriage would do well to start appreciating their partner. People stray for a reason and that’s usually because a primary need is not being met by their relationship.

"There’s a lot of hype around date-nights, but I don’t think the reason for having them is taken seriously enough. Invest your time, energy and appreciation in your partner."

Illicit Encounters also says 149 people are using its website in Nairn, 14 in Cromarty, 25 in Fortrose and 21 in Fort Augustus.

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