James Wright: We need a practical policy agenda for raising the birth rate

James Wright: We need a practical policy agenda for raising the birth rate

James Wright is a farmer, agri-tech entrepreneur and policy director of the Conservative Rural Forum. He stood as the parliamentary candidate at the 2024 general election. Britain has a problem that no one in Westminster wants to talk about. We’ve become dependent on immigration as a quick fix for our ageing population, shrinking workforce, and increasingly fragile social care. But the deeper, more uncomfortable truth is this, we’re not having e…

Tackling Northern Ireland’s birth rate crisis

It is projected that by 2030, the number of pensioners in Northern Ireland will exceed the number of school-children, a reflection of how fast the North is ageing. Breda O’Brien of The Iona Institute took part in a panel discussion  on the BBC’s Talkback programme about what this means and whether it is a matter of concern. Breda’s contribution can be heard towards the end of the item. It  can be listened to here.

Lunchtime webinar - Irreplaceable: Adapting to lower birth rates and longer lives

Join us for our lunchtime webinar, Irreplaceable: Adapting to lower birth rates and longer lives on Tuesday 29 April 2025.