The Government should subsidise weddings for low-income couples in a bid to tackle loneliness, a report has concluded.

Couples living in relative or absolute low income should receive discounts on administrative, legal and booking fees for their first marriage, the Centre for Social Justice recommended.

The subsidies would total up to £550 per couple, along with a requirement to take part in a pre-nuptial preparation course.

And it could cover costs such as the basic ceremony, room bookings, notice of marriage, certificates, administrative work and postage fees.

According to the CSJ the policy, which would cost around £35million a year, would help slash the estimated £2.5billion annual cost of loneliness to employers.

The Centre for Social Justice has said that weddings should be subsidised for low-income couples in a bid to tackle loneliness (Stock Image)

The researchers pointed to recent polling that showed married people were found to be less likely to feel lonely as single people.

Of 2,066 UK adults polled, Whitestone Insight found that married people reported feeling lonely 30 per cent of the time.

This was nearly half as frequently as single people who reported feeling lonely 58 per cent of the time.

Married couples were also less lonely than those co-habiting, who experienced loneliness 39 per cent of the time.

But the researchers also found 50 per cent of the country believes the financial cost of weddings is too high and puts them off marriage.

The average cost of a wedding in 2024 has been estimated at £1,342 for a registry office wedding - the average cost of a UK wedding was estimated as £20,775.

The Government should play a part in normalising low-spend weddings by providing financial incentives to low-income couples, the report said.

Relative and absolute low-income is defined by a household income below 60 per cent of the median across the UK, either in that year or compared to a base year, usually 2010 to 2011.

Labour MP Jon Cruddas, who wrote a forward to the report, said: 'British families are uniquely fragile and complex and decades of family breakdown have contributed to the rise of loneliness and isolation today.

Labour MP Jon Cruddas said: 'British families are uniquely fragile and complex and decades of family breakdown have contributed to the rise of loneliness and isolation today'

'The CSJ make a convincing case that family must be put at the heart of a refreshed strategy for tackling loneliness.

'It considers subjects that others have shied away from, including asking if the decline in marriage has contributed to a rise in loneliness.'

The number of people getting married has fallen to record lows in recent years - figures from the Office for National Statistics showed the 219,850 marriages in England and Wales in 2019 was the lowest since 1862, and down 6.4 per cent on the previous year.

Figures released last year, covering 2020, showed just 85,770 marriages although the numbers were severely impacted by the Covid pandemic.

Josh Nicholson, Senior Researcher at the CSJ, said: 'Helping more people to get married by subsidising the bill for the those on the lowest incomes offers significant health, social and economic benefits for them and the taxpayer.

'Loneliness is a rapidly growing problem - a contributor to the mental health crisis - with more than 30million people in the UK feeling lonely at least some of the time. 45 per cent of Brits say that they live in 'lonely generation' - rising to 70 per cent of 18 to 24-year-olds.

'Our research confirms that family relationships, and particularly marriage, are the best defence against loneliness as well as providing many more benefits over the long-term. 

'Married couples report often feeling lonely just 4 per cent of the time, well below those who are cohabiting or single, while 35 per cent of adult say their family prevents them from being lonely.'