The Catholic Church in Wales has reaffirmed its commitment to the institution of marriage, as official figures released last week showed that more than half of all births in Wales are outside of wedlock - and the figure is rising.

For the third year in a row, babies in Wales are more likely to be born outside of marriage than to married couples, reports Welsh newspaper Western Mail.

According to the latest figures, Wales retained its position as the country with the highest percentage of children born outside of wedlock in the UK, at 52.4 per cent. Scotland is second, with 47.1 per cent, and in Northern Ireland the figure is 36.3 per cent. The UK average is 42.9 per cent.

And the number of children born outside of marriage is set to rise, having grown at a rate of about 1 per cent - equivalent to more than 300 babies - each year since the millennium.

Experts in Wales see the growing trend as part of an ongoing change in attitude towards raising children.

Karen Jewell, a consultant midwife and chair of the Royal College of Midwives' Welsh Board, said, "We are finding that a lot of pregnant women are not married, but they are with a partner or in a long-term relationship.

"I think that many couples see getting married as something they can do in a few years' time, when the children are older."