More than half of Britons believe religion does more harm than good, with less than a quarter believing faith is a positive force, according to a survey.

Even 20 per cent of British people who stated they were "very religious" said religion was harmful to society.

The study found only 8 per cent of Britons describe themselves as very religious, with more than 60 per cent saying they were not religious.

The Survation poll of 2,004 people found more than 55% said atheists were just as likely to be moral people as religious people.

In fact, one in eight Britons said atheists tend to be more moral, compared to 6% who say atheists are less moral, challenging widely held beliefs that religion is one of the last remaining bastions of British morality.

Of those questioned , 56% said they were Christian, 2.5% were Muslim, 1% were Jewish and the remainder were of another faith or none.