British men have worst sex lives, Canadians the best

Three out of 10 British men have not had sex in the last 12 months, according to new research.

An international study in the Journal of Sex and Marital Therapy reports that only 70 per cent of men in Britain have had sex in the last year and that British men have the worst sex lives, while Canadians have the best.

The results also show that the number of sexually active women in Britain was below 60 per cent.

The research, based on 6,000 people aged 40 to 80, in Britain, the United States, Canada, Australia and New Zealand, shows large differences in sexual activity.

In the US, Australia and Canada, 80 per cent of men were reported as sexually active, which was defined as having sex at least once in the previous year.

According to the research, 41 per cent of British men and 33 per cent of women are very sexually active - having had sex at least once in the previous week.

New Zealand was the only country where more women than men were classed as very sexually active.

Catherine Townsend, the sex writer and Independent columnist, said the solution was simply for British couples to talk more about their sex lives.