On London Extra: Child reduction

Birthrates are falling and families are migrating. Plus Oxford Street job creation, when Prescott met Livingstone, Pat Brown was right and London Bluesky bits of joy

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City Hall has been releasing helpful facts about the very youngest Londoners and why there aren't as many of them as there were. These show that birthrates have been falling in the capital for at least ten years and that the perennial population outflow from inner London has consistently increased since the 2008 financial crash among Londoners aged 25-44 - the very group most likely to have small children.

Covid and the recent high cost of living have imparted fresh momentum. This accelerated departure of "current and potential families" from inner to outer London and beyond is "likely to persist" says the City Intelligence unit's report. Thousands of five year-olds, the little tykes, have been leading the charge to the Home Counties.

Lower birthrates are occurring all over the UK and in London this is so despite the city being home to growing numbers of women of reproductive age. Why? Because, having other options in life, they have fewer (if any) children than previous generations. And in London, of course, the insane cost of housing provides additional fuel for outward migration, as does - as is too-often forgotten - the also very high cost of childcare.