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Migration fill baby gap is now a headline in Canberra as the nation grapples with the steepest fall in birth rates since the 1970s. Why the baby boom is over Australia’s total fertility rate slipped to 1.61 children per woman in the latest ABS release, well below the replacement level of 2.1. Economic uncertainty, rising housing costs and a cultural shift towards later parenthood have all contributed. Young couples are choosing to rent in the inner‑city suburbs of Sydney and Melbourne rather than buying a home in the outer‑lying regions, making the financial calculus of raising a family less appealing. What the numbers mean for the economy Fewer births translate into a shrinking future labour force, a concern for a country that relies on a growing pool of workers to sustain its superannuation system and health‑care funding. The Treasury’s latest projection warns that, without a boost in the working‑age population, GDP growth could lag behind the OECD average by 2035. The migration solu...