Italy plan to double payments to families to fight falling birth rates

'In five years we have lost more than 66,000 births (per year),' says Italian Health Minister Beatrice Lorenzin

The Italian government is planning to double child benefit payments in an attempt to combat the country's falling birth rates.
In response, Italy's Health Minister Beatrice Lorenzin has declared the monthly benefit for lower income families should be doubled from €80 (£63) to €160 (£126).
She described the steady decline in birth rates as an "apocalypse".



There were only 488,000 babies born in Italy in 2015, a fall of 5 per cent from 2014 when there were 509,000 new babies.
According to World Bank figures, Italy's 2014 birth rate was eight per 1,000 citizens compared to 12 in the UK and 13 in the US.
Ms Lorenzin told the La Repubblica newspaper:"If we carry on as we are and fail to reverse the trend, there will be fewer than 350,000 births a year in 10 years' time, 40% less than in 2010 - an apocalypse.

"In five years we have lost more than 66,000 births (per year)... If we link this to the increasing number of old and chronically ill people, we have a picture of a moribund country."
These payments were introduced last year and available for babies born between 1 January 2015 and 31 December 2017. The benefit will be available to these families until the child reaches the age of three.
If Ms Lorenzin changes were approved, it would increase government spending by €2.2 billion (£1.7 billion).


http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/italy-plan-to-double-payments-to-families-to-fight-falling-birth-rates-babies-italian-health-a7031891.html


Guess the Italian stud is getting the right results these days.

sassy wrote:

'In five years we have lost more than 66,000 births (per year),' says Italian Health Minister Beatrice Lorenzin
The Italian government is planning to double child benefit payments in an attempt to combat the country's falling birth rates.
In response, Italy's Health Minister Beatrice Lorenzin has declared the monthly benefit for lower income families should be doubled from €80 (£63) to €160 (£126).
She described the steady decline in birth rates as an "apocalypse".
There were only 488,000 babies born in Italy in 2015, a fall of 5 per cent from 2014 when there were 509,000 new babies.
According to World Bank figures, Italy's 2014 birth rate was eight per 1,000 citizens compared to 12 in the UK and 13 in the US.
Ms Lorenzin told the La Repubblica newspaper: "If we carry on as we are and fail to reverse the trend, there will be fewer than 350,000 births a year in 10 years' time, 40% less than in 2010 - an apocalypse.
"In five years we have lost more than 66,000 births (per year)... If we link this to the increasing number of old and chronically ill people, we have a picture of a moribund country."
These payments were introduced last year and available for babies born between 1 January 2015 and 31 December 2017. The benefit will be available to these families until the child reaches the age of three.
If Ms Lorenzin changes were approved, it would increase government spending by €2.2 billion (£1.7 billion).
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/italy-plan-to-double-payments-to-families-to-fight-falling-birth-rates-babies-italian-health-a7031891.html

Guess the Italian stud is getting the right results these days.

Interesting, and none of that has anything to do with those 'Italian Mommas' allowing their sons to remain at home until they are married and then some of them just stay with 'MOMMA' after they get wed
Now that would be a 'baby making killer' situation right there; how many 21st century women want to wed some man still allowing their mothers to: cook/clean/iron/sew and tend to their every little boy whim and think he'd make a good husband?
Just say'n...seems that the Italian government is going about this 'lack of births' backwards and not pro-actively --- but that's just IMO

Got a feeling it has more to do with Italian women using contraception now and working.

sassy wrote:Got a feeling it has more to do with Italian women using contraception now and working.

Well, exactly...how many of our generation were told to stay 'virginal/pure' and wait for the RIGHT MAN to come whisk you away to paradise and we need to make the perfect: wife/mother/home! 

Sweet Jesus those days are over and the Italian women just took longer to get the message.