Declining birth rate is more complex than a 'baby bonus' can fix, academic says
New Zealand First leader Winston Peters has proposed a 'Kiwi Kids Grant' to pay parents $45,000 over three years to combat the country's declining birth rate. However, demographic expert Professor Paul Spoonley argues that financial incentives are insufficient to address the complex, long-term structural causes of the population decline.
Why it matters
This highlights the ongoing global policy debate over whether direct cash transfers can effectively reverse demographic crises in developed nations.
New Zealand's declining population is "much more complex than simply providing a baby bonus".
That's the opinion of Massey University's professor Paul Spoonley.
It comes after New Zealand First leader Winston Peters announced it would pay people to have babies if it was elected into government .
At a public meeting at the weekend, Peters said New Zealand was facing a "population precipice" and the rate of New Zealand citizens having children had fallen dramatically .
"We need more Kiwis having more children, and one way to do that is to substantially lower the main barrier most are facing, that is the cost," he said.
The party's Kiwi Kids Grant would seek to arrest that fall, by paying parents $5000 a year for the first three years, and for up to three children.
That meant parents, as long as one was a New Zealand citizen, would receive up to $45,000.
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