Fears for UK economy as births collapse to lowest level since 1977
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The number of babies born in England and Wales in the first six months of 2026 was the lowest half-year total since 1977.
Just 287,236 births were recorded, as the country's birth rate continues to steadily decline.
Politicians were last night urged to 'wake up' to a 'threat to Britain's prosperity' after Office for National Statistics (ONS) figures found 2,406 fewer children were born in the first half of this year compared to last.
And the figure is around a fifth less than in the first six months of 2012 – when 360,256 births were recorded.
It comes as Britain, like many countries, faces a deepening birth-rate crisis – with the cost of living and changing societal norms prompting couples not to have children.
The ONS previously noted that a total of 585,395 babies were born last year, which was the lowest number recorded over a full year since 1977.
In 2025, the fertility rate – the average number of children a woman is expected to have – dropped to a record low of 1.39 in England and Wales, down from 1.41 in 2024. However, women must have 2.1 babies on average to keep the population stable.
The average age of women when giving birth also rose by one-tenth of a year to 31.1 last year, with the average age of fathers reaching 34.
According to the Resolution Foundation think-tank, which has close links to the Labour Party, population growth is now 'set to come from international net migration' in England and Wales.
The number of babies born in England and Wales in the first six months of 2026 was the lowest half-year total since 1977 (stock image)
Former Conservative MP Miriam Cates, who has long campaigned to draw attention to Britain's 'baby bust', last night said the new figures were 'hugely concerning'. She added: 'Britain's birth rate decline shows no sign of reversing.
'The consequences of decades of below-replacement birth rates are already being felt, with a record tax burden on working-age people, shortages of workers in key industries and an unfunded pensions bill.
'Today's figures guarantee that the problem will be even worse in 18 or 20 years' time, when the number of young people entering the workforce is likely to be the lowest ever recorded.
'Politicians need to wake up to this issue; falling birth rates are the biggest long-term threat to Britain's prosperity.'
Meanwhile, Dr Harry Benson of the Marriage Foundation, which champions family stability, said: 'Of course housing and financial pressures matter. But the bigger problem is that we have become a society that puts off commitment.
'Compared with the 1970s, women are having their first child around five years later... We have become very good at living for today and much less good at planning for tomorrow.'
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