By Deaths outnumber births for first time in 40 years
Last year saw more deaths than births registered in the UK for the first time in over 40 years.
This is only the second time that deaths have outnumbered births since the 1890s.
Birth rates have been in decline over the last decade, but the sharp increase in deaths has been attributed to the coronavirus pandemic.
According to the Office for National Statistics, (ONS) just over 683,000 births were registered compared with almost 690,000 deaths.
Deaths rose by 13% last year. This is the largest jump in a single year since the second world war.
Despite predictions, figures published yesterday by the ONS suggest the first lockdown had not led to a baby boom, with a sharp decline in births nine months on.
Fertility rates in England and Wales for December 2020 and January 2021 showed “relatively steep decreases” compared with the previous year, down by 8.1% and 10.2% respectively.
But, the ONS has urged cautions when reading these figures, due to the impact of the pandemic on birth registrations.
Faisal Islam, Economics Editor for the BBC, suggested that the figures highlight a significant turning point for British society. He said:
“It is perhaps unsurprising – and it should be a one off – but the provisional finding that the UK natural population shrank is stark all the same.
“The spike in deaths above the number of births puts pandemic mortality into some sort of context.
“But it also shines a light on the significant falls in the fertility rate in the past few years.
“In 2012, the total fertility rate was 1.92 – close to the level where a population replaces itself.
“In just eight years that has fallen below 1.6.
“There are many questions to ask about whether this is linked to a significant squeeze on younger families.
“These figures need not necessarily be a problem. However, if confirmed in the final figures, they do point to significant changes for British society and its economy too.”
