Tim Loughton, Tory MP for East Worthing and Shoreham, caught the attention of the House of Commons last Wednesday with the statistic that 17% of 18-24 year-olds claim volunteering has improved their sex life. This was during a debate about how to make it easier for volunteers to enrol in youth projects.
The 2004 CSV Survey from which Mr Loughton took the statistic also showed that volunteering can help people lose weight, stop smoking, drink less alcohol and eat less chocolate. Loughton’s out-of-place remark seems to have provoked an over-reaction from Project V, Sussex University’s volunteering project, which criticised it as being inappropriate.
They claim that statistics, such as the above, trivialise the motivations behind volunteering, which has enough appeal as a way to get off campus and meet new people. Project V also questioned how volunteering can improve one’s sex life, but Loughton defended his remark, saying it was purely to attract interest in the topic. He went on to argue that any activity where we meet more people and gain confidence is positive. For more information on volunteering at Sussex go to www.ussu.info/projectv for what may be one of the most wholesome ways to improve your sex life.
