At an average of six hours and 39 minutes of free time per day, Belgians have come first in an international study on leisure. Germany was second, with just five minutes less spare time than the Belgians.

The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) reviewed 18 countries across the world and found the national daily average clocked in at five hours and 47 minutes of non-work time.

Residents aged 15 and older in countries with the least free time included those in Mexico, Japan, Australia and Turkey.

An average of 36 per cent of people around the world use their free time watching television or listening to the radio, the OECD’s study, ‘Society at a Glance 2009’, reveals.