Monday is growing in popularity as the day on which to marry because it is cheaper, according to figures released on Monday by the central statistics office CBS.

In 2012, 16% of weddings were held on a Monday, compared with 40% on a Friday. This makes Monday the second most popular day of the week for a wedding, the CBS said.

When it comes to civil partnerships, Monday is the most popular day with four out of 10 couples opting to sign their contract on the the first day of the working week.

Last year, 69,000 couples got married and around 9,000 couples signed a civil partnership, says the CBS. Since the turn of the century, the number of weddings has fallen by 14%.