Wicklow singer Hozier has said that “the damage done by the Church to the people of Ireland is completely irreparable" and that faith is an "absurd thing."

Speaking to the London Evening Standard, the 24-year-old from Bray said: “The damage done by the Church to the people of Ireland is completely irreparable, and the reparations are all too few. There’s still a lack of will to turn around and say, ‘This is not OK’.

"There are still things like regular news segments where they ask the local priest what he thinks. Why is it an organisation that is considered to have any moral standing at all? The track record is just appalling.”

Hozier has rocketed to fame over the past few months with his song Take Me To Church. The video, which depicts a homophobic attack, was retweeted by Stephen Fry and Hozier says that song is about people who undermine what it is to love someone.

“The song is about loving somebody. I’d been following what was going on in Russia, where far Right groups were doing these organised attacks, filming them and putting them on social media.”

He added: “I still wouldn’t define myself as an atheist - it’s too absolute. But I don’t have any faith. I think faith is an absurd thing but I’m OK with that. There are no answers because the universe never asked a question in the first place.”

Hozier's debut album is due out in September.