CHURCH weddings have hit an all time low in Spain.

Only 22.2% of 68,560 couples tied the knot at the country’s catholic altars in the first half of 2016.

That is a huge fall from the same period in the year 2000, when 75% had a Catholic ceremony.

Barcelona province had the lowest number of Christian ceremonies in mainland Spain, at only 10.5%.

Malaga saw the least in Andalucia, with 21.6%.

However, neighbouring Jaen had the highest in the country, at 53%.

Alfonso Pérez-Agote, a sociologist, says three main reasons explain the nose dive in Catholic weddings.

These are the impact of the economic crisis, which has left 34.4% of under 30s unemployed and a change in cultural views, which means marriage is not seen as important.

He added that growing secularisation also played a part.

“The young people of today are the children of those disinterested in religion.

“When they think of getting married, they don’t think of doing so in the church.”