SINGLE MEN who are bemused by the dating game may take some consolation from a new survey which has found that Irish women are the fussiest in Europe.
Good communication, honesty and faithfulness are qualities that Irish women are particularly fussy about, while they care little about athleticism or academic qualifications.
Their views on putting the toilet seat down or leaving laundry on the floor are not measured.
Perhaps in a nod to the recession, 90 per cent of Irish women surveyed say an optimistic attitude to life is important or very important in a partner.
However, Irish women have little tolerance for men on the dole, according to the survey by online dating firm Parship. Some 55 per cent of Irish women say they wouldn’t date an unemployed man and almost one third say they could “barely accept it”.
The survey was conducted by Innofact throughout Europe, involved 13,000 people, either single or in relationships, aged between 18 and 59 years.
Almost 84 per cent say they don’t want their partner to be financially dependent on them. Just 46.4 per cent of men say this is an important issue.
This fussiness could also explain the claim from 40 per cent of single women that they haven’t had a relationship in three years. While Irish women are the fussiest in the 13 countries surveyed, our laid-back men bring down our fussiness score, making us the fourth fussiest race in Europe, after the Austrians, Swiss and Germans.
Like their womenfolk, Irish men also rank good communication and honesty highly but are not that bothered by their partner’s domestic skills, their religion, nationality or earning power.
However, their partners’ attractiveness is one area where Irish men are more demanding than women.
Almost 60 per cent of Irish men say good looks are important to them, compared with just over 38 per cent of women.
Having a partner with an optimistic attitude to life is important to just over 67 per cent of men, compared with nine out of 10 women.
Irish women are not unique when it comes to making demands, with women across Europe being 27 per cent more choosy than men when it comes to selecting a potential partner.
Anyone hoping to find an undemanding partner should look to the Netherlands, which has the least fussy single people in Europe, followed by France and Britain.
So much for our image as the laid-back Irish.
