Britain’s fertility ticking bomb was revealed today with the lowest birth rate ever recorded in official statistics.

According to the Office for National Statistics (ONS), an average of 1.44 children per woman of reproductive age will be recorded in England and Wales by 2023.

Experts fear falling rates will lead to population decline, with the decline in the number of working-age adults triggering economic problems and a reliance on immigration to shore up numbers.

While women who focused on their careers in their youth were blamed, others cited living and housing costs as factors.

Particularly low fertility rates have been recorded in certain parts of England and Wales.

One of these ‘baby deserts’ was the City of London, which had the lowest fertility rate, with an average of 0.55 babies per woman.

Cambridge recorded the second lowest fertility rate at 0.91, followed by Brighton and Hove with 0.98 babies per woman.

The biggest decrease in fertility rates by region was in Wales, where it fell from 1.46 to 1.39, and in North West England, where it fell from 1.53 to 1.46.

Women of childbearing age will have just 1.44 children on average by 2023, according to a report from the Office for National Statistics. This is the lowest level recorded since records began in 1938

Cambridge recorded one of the lowest fertility rates in England and Wales, with less than one baby per woman of childbearing age.

In contrast, London, the North East and the West Midlands experienced the smallest declines of all regions, although they still saw overall declines.

The collapse in the fertility rate observed in the ONS report is part of a wider trend observed since 2010 and more broadly since the 60s.

When looked at by age group, the decline is greatest among women in their 20s.

Birth rates among women in their early 20s have fallen nearly 80 percent since the 60s; It has fallen from 182 births per 1000 women today to just 38.6 births per 1000 women today.

In other words, only a fifth of British women today will have children by the age of 25; This is the lowest rate ever.

The fertility collapse was accompanied by a decline in births.

England and Wales recorded just 591,072 live births in 2023; this is the lowest number since 1977.

Although no region in England and Wales has recorded a fertility rate at or above what experts call the replacement level of 2.1, some have come close.

England and Wales recorded just 591,072 live births in 2023; this was the lowest number since 1977

Luton in Bedfordshire had the highest fertility rate of either country at 2.01.

This was followed by the London boroughs of Barking and Dagenham, with a rate of two babies per woman, and Slough in Berkshire, with a rate of 1.93.

A number of factors have been blamed for falling fertility rates in modern Britain.

Some stated that women now enjoy the independence society offers them compared to a century ago and choose not to have children.

In a similar trend, some women may choose to have children only later in life, so fewer women overall may focus on their careers instead.

For men, lifestyle factors, such as the increasing prevalence of obesity in many countries, are also thought to have a negative impact on fertility.

Rising cost of living pressures, particularly childcare and housing prices, are another factor demoralizing couples who have children or decide to have more than one child, and may ultimately lead to a decline in the total fertility rate.

Professor Bassel Wattar, associate professor of reproductive medicine at Anglia Ruskin University, said the data ‘reflects a worrying but persistent downward trend’.

Elon Musk (pictured), who boasts he’s ‘always beating the baby drum’, has been warning about the decline in births for years

He added: ‘This may be explained by the recent cost of living crisis and financial difficulties which have deterred couples from having more than two children per household.

‘This is also coupled with increasingly limited NHS funding available for fertility treatments such as IVF, further contributing to low fertility and birth rates across the UK.’

Meanwhile, Professor Melinda Mills, an expert in demography and population health at the University of Oxford, said: ‘People are struggling to find a partner, housing, economic uncertainty, staying in education longer and, in particular, women entering and staying in the workforce.’

Jonathan Portes, professor of economics and public policy at King’s College London, said in the short term lower birth numbers would reduce spending pressure on schools, childcare and child benefits, but added: ‘In the longer term this will of course mean less to support a growing elderly population. It means worker.’

He said the trend ‘should worry anyone thinking about what Britain will look like in 2050’.

However, scientists claim that public services and economic growth are at risk if the aging population cannot be renewed.

Continuously falling birth rates will also put extra pressure on the NHS and social care, as there will be fewer young people to work in the services that older populations will need.

Professor Wattar said: ‘Many high-income countries such as Japan and South Korea are seeing a similar worrying trend, which is having a direct negative impact on the country’s GDP and productivity.

‘The fertility replacement rate must remain close to 2.1 children per woman and the government can implement urgent interventions to reverse trends, such as offering longer paid parental leave, more funding for childcare for working parents and more funding for fertility treatments on the NHS . ‘

The ONS report showed that the average age of fathers had risen to 33.8, while the average of mothers remained constant at 30.9.

Although the age of mothers has remained constant, there has been a historic increase in the rate at which women, on average, decide to have children later in life.

By comparison, while almost 60 percent of women born in the 40s had at least one baby by age 25, today that rate has dropped to 20 percent.

England isn’t the only country experiencing a baby bust.

Earlier this year, scientists warned that 75 percent of countries would face this demographic problem by 2050.

This rate, which experts describe as a ‘shattering social change’, could rise to 97 percent of all nations by 2100.

Experts and even celebrities like Elon Musk have been warning about the danger of global population decline for years.

Some countries are taking action to reverse this trend.

France, which already has a fertility rate 1.8 higher than Britain, plans to offer a free ‘fertility check’ to everyone aged 18 to 25, both men and women, in a bid to tackle the ‘scourge’ of infertility. To President Emmanuel Macron.