The average Briton only works 65 minutes a week towards their pension, according to new research.

On top of this, the study by Halifax Financial Services revealed that on average we contribute just £12.77 a week towards our pensions – the same amount an average family spends on drinks and tobacco each week.

If we translate our average pension contributions on a monthly basis it adds up to over £50, which is £663 annually or £29,550 over the course of your working life.

And if we bear in mind that the typical worker earns £1,020,000 over 44.5 years, this means we only set aside 2.9 per cent of our total earnings for retirement.

Of a total 11,750 working days in our lifetimes, the research shows we spend a meagre 336 days – three per cent – of them, providing for our pension funds.

Ray Milne, Halifax Financial services spokesman, said: "These figures may seem shocking but they show that the average wage earner is just not saving enough – so much so that many simply won't have enough money to survive on when they retire.

"When you work out the percentage of time we work and contribute to our pensions in a week the results are stark, just over one hour a week is not enough."