Poorer couples 'should have weddings paid for by state', says think tank

Poorer couples should have a contribution towards their wedding costs from the government in an effort to tackle loneliness, according to a think tank set up by tory Sir Iain Duncan Smith.

The Centre for Social Justice (CSJ) has suggested the government pay up to £550 to low-income couples to cover the rising cost of getting married.

Research from the group indicated that marriage was important in lowering levels of loneliness which it says is prevalent in the UK.

The "Lonely Nation" report found that 60% of Brits feel lonely at times.

Unmarried couples living together were about half as likely to feel lonely as single people, and "married people were even less likely than cohabitees to be lonely.”

The average cost of a wedding in 2023 was £20,700, according to a study by wedding planning website Hitched.co.uk.

Josh Nicholson, a researcher at the CSJ, said: "Helping more people to get married by subsidising the bill for those on the lowest incomes offers significant health, social and economic benefits for them and the taxpayer”, the Times reported.

He added: “The discount would only be available for couples with a relative or absolute low household income, and could impact "an estimated one in five weddings".

The annual cost of such a scheme is estimated at £35 million.

The government said it had already invested more than £80 million in projects tackling the "pressing public health issue" of chronic loneliness.