Australians are having fewer babies and our local-born population is about to shrink: here’s why it’s not that scary
- Written by Amanda Davies, Professor and Head of School of Social Sciences, The University of Western Australia
Australians are having fewer babies, so many fewer that without international migration our population would be on track to decline in just over a decade.
In most circumstances, the number of babies per woman that a population needs to sustain itself – the so-called total fertility rate – is 2.1.
Australia’s total fertility rate...