Euro-M.P.s want baby boom

Press, 14 April 1984, Page 11

Euro-M.P.s want baby boom

NZPA-Reuter Strasbourg The European Parliament called yesterday for a baby boom, giving a warning that Europe’s future role could be jeopardised because it was falling seriously behind the rest of the world in producing children. The 430-member Parliament, which has a largely advisory role, approved a

resolution urging Social Affairs Ministers to come up with ways of reversing a decline in Community birthrates to 1.68 babies a mother in 1982 from 2.79 two decades ago. France, the president of the 10-nation European Economic Community, has suggested an information campaign aimed at encouraging reproduction and

financial aids for large families. Europeans with "political responsibilities” would be the first targets of the publicity campaign. France argues that Europe’s future political role may be weakened because on present trends the Community will have only 2.3 per cent of the world’s population in 2025, down from 8.8 per cent in 1950.