Govt urges women to have more children and start families sooner

EDUCATION Secretary Bridget Phillipson has called on Britons to consider having more children and having them sooner, warning of the “worrying repercussions” posed by a decline in birth rates.

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She told the Daily Telegraph falling birth rates were not only a concerning trend but one which “tells a story, heartbreakingly, about the dashed dreams of many families”.

Official data from the Office for National Statistics shows fertility rates in England and Wales dropped to 1.44 children per woman in 2023, the lowest level since records began in 1938. Ms Phillipson said people were scared off having children due to the high costs, and wanted “more young people to have children, if they so choose”.