Who's the daddy? One in ten fathers in Britain have doubts over the paternity of their children

Figure rises to one in five men in some regions, including the North East



Many fathers in Northern Ireland and London also harbour paternity doubts



Meanwhile three per cent of women say they are not sure of child's father

Problem is most apparent in the North West, where six per cent are unsure



Questions: Nearly one in ten British fathers have doubts over the paternity of their children

Nearly one in ten British fathers harbour doubts over the paternity of their children, according to shocking new research.

In some parts of the country, the figure rises to almost one in five men who have admitted they are unsure if they are biological father of their children.

On average, eight per cent of British men - around 1.2million - say they have worried whether their children are their own.



That rises to 16 per cent in Newcastle, London and Northern Ireland, research revealed.

However, in Yorkshire and Scotland, men were far less likely to question if they were the biological parent of their children - with just three per cent admitting to having doubts.

By comparison, three per cent of British women - some 460,000 - said they were unsure of who the biological father of their child is.

The research - based on a YouGov survey of 5,266 parents on behalf of website DNATestingChoice.com - explains why more Britons are using DNA paternity testing.

The findings showed clear pockets of concern in some of Britain’s cities.

Fathers in the North East were the most likely to be unsure of male respondents representing twice the UK average.



By comparison, mothers in the North West, in cities like Liverpool and Manchester, were most likely to be unsure who the biological father of their children was with nearly 6 per cent - twice the UK average - admitting they did not know for certain.

Other factors including the age of the parents, occupation and marital status had a bearing on how confident they felt about their partner’s fidelity.

Older fathers proved to be more secure in their family structure, with just five per cent of over-55s saying they were unsure of their child’s paternity.

Mystery: This map shows the percentage of mothers in each region who are unsure who the father of their child is. The problem is greatest in North West England, while Scottish mothers have the least doubts

Meanwhile this regional map shows where in the country fathers are most likely to question their child's paternity. Fathers in Northern Ireland and North East England are most likely to have doubts

However, the research showed that 15 per cent of fathers aged between 25-34 were most likely to have been unsure.

Mothers who have never married were found to be the most likely to harbour doubts about the paternity of their child.

Around eight per cent - three times the national average- of unmarried mothers replied ‘yes’ to the survey.

While 18 per cent of fathers who are separated or divorced said they have questioned the paternity of their offspring.