Almost half of men would accept their girlfriend's proposal this leap year

Around 44 per cent of men admit they would say yes if their girlfriend proposed to them for marriage this leap year, according to a survey.

And more than a third of men (36 per cent) said they would welcome a proposal from their better half, the Daily Mail reported. The figure is much higher than what women expect - only 31 per cent of women believe their boyfriend would accept their proposal - revealed the survey by PopCap Games.

But while a significant portion of men would welcome this gender role reversal, the study said that ultimately, British men are still a traditional lot. Almost three quarters of men think the status quo - where the man requests the woman's hand in marriage - is fitting with modern times, with just 27 per cent saying they feltu00a0it was an outdated tradition.

The discrepancy was even more marked among the younger age group, where only one in ten 18 to 24 year olds thought the traditional way was outdated. And close to a third of men admitted they would be embarrassed to tell their friends that it was their girlfriend who had proposed.

However, this new tradition comes at a cost for the fairer sex, as around half of men polled said if the woman proposes, she should have to buy her own ring. A stingy one in ten men confided that they would like their partner to propose so they would be relieved of the financial burden of splashing out on a diamond engagement ring.