Baby bonus not on the cards to halt fertility freefall

The latest Intergenerational Report projected that deaths will outnumber births in Australia by 2066, with the country's fertility rate falling to 1.34 by 2066 from 1.44 currently. With a net migrant intake of 235,000 per year, population growth will slow to 0.6 percent, resulting in a shrinking working-age population responsible for supporting a growing number of retirees.

The report highlighted that falling birth rates across developed nations are due to factors like increased contraception use, higher education attainment, greater workforce participation, and delays in starting partnerships. Despite the report stating that reviving the baby bonus from the Howard government era is unlikely, the treasurer emphasized the importance of initiatives such as expanding paid parental leave and boosting access to early childhood education to encourage people to start families.