A third of British people still believe being gay is a choice.

The YouGov study revealed 31% of Brits think gay men and lesbians ‘choose’ their sexuality, while 49% of people think they are born that way.

3% of respondents attributed being gay to the way people are raised by their parents, while 17% said they ‘did not know’.

The poll found just 16% of Brits between the ages of 18-24 believe being gay is a choice, compared with 40% for 50-64 year-olds and 34% those aged 65 and over.

YouGov also found differences between opinions on human sexuality correlated with people’s politics.

People who voted for Labour or the Lib Dems in the 2015 general election were likely to say people are born gay (58% each), while UKIP voters were the most likely to think that being gay is a choice (41%).

There were also gender differences.

While men and women were equally likely to think being gay is a choice (32% vs 31%), women were much likely think people are born gay (54% vs 43%).

The number reflects a US study from 2014, where 37% of those surveyed said they believed being gay or bisexual was personal decision.