5 d. ago Britain's 'baby deserts' REVEALED as birth rates slump to lowest level ever

Alarming Office for National Statistics ( ONS ) data shows the fertility rate-the average number of children a woman has-in England and Wales slumped to 1.41 in 2024.

Politics

5 d. ago Inside wildest Burning Man moments – from alien encounter to orgy dome and gas bomb

Burning Man Festival is back with a bang and it's sure to be crazier than ever. Now former attendees revealed their craziest experiences from the week-long desert event

Events

9 d. ago Rich economies may need foreign workers to fuel growth, policymakers warn

Central bankers say low birth rates in world’s largest economies pose threat to productivity and prices

Events

9 d. ago Rich economies will need foreign workers to fuel growth, policymakers warn

Central bankers say low birth rates in world’s largest economies pose threat to productivity and prices

Events

1 week ago Botswana was once ‘at risk of extinction’ from HIV. Now it is a world leader in eliminating the virus in children

The pioneering African country is lauded for slashing rates of mother-to-child transmission to just 1.2% and is holding trials that may now hold the key to curing young peopleAt the turn of the century, HIV was so rampant in Botswana that politicians and doctors viewed it as an existential threat. One in eight infants were reported to be infected at birth, while rates of mother to child transmission either through pregnancy, childbirth or breastfeeding ranged from between 20 and 40%, according to UNAIDS. Between 1990 and 2000, mortality among children under five almost doubled due to HIV.With a population of just 1.7 million people, no cure available and the second-highest HIV prevalence in the world, the country’s then-president, Festus Mogae, declared in 2001: “We are threatened with extinction.” Continue reading...

Politics

1 week ago ‘Russia is targeting us deliberately’: how attacks on maternity hospitals fuelled a birth crisis in Ukraine

Women have been left fearful of childbirth after more than 80 attacks on maternity units since the invasion, leading to the world’s lowest birth rate and the highest mortality rateIt was one of the most horrifying targets of Russia’s war on Ukraine so far. Reports showed a pregnant woman on a stretcher, her face ashen with shock, legs smeared with blood and a hand holding her bump. Behind her, the bombed-out ruins of Mariupol’s maternity hospital. More than a dozen people, including women in labour, were injured in the attack in March 2022. The woman photographed, Iryna Kalinina, later died along with her unborn baby.In the three years since then, maternity care in Ukraine has remained under constant attack, with more than 2,000 strikes on medical facilities, including 81 affecting maternal care and delivery rooms. Just last month, Diana Koshyk, seven months pregnant, was killed when a missile struck a maternity hospital in the eastern Dnipropetrovsk region. Continue reading...

Events

1 week ago ‘Russia is targeting us deliberately’: how attacks on maternity hospitals fuelled a birth

Women have been left fearful of childbirth after more than 80 attacks on maternity units since the invasion, leading to the world’s lowest birth rate and the highest mortality rateIt was one of the most horrifying targets of Russia’s war on Ukraine so far. Reports showed a pregnant woman on a stretcher, her face ashen with shock, legs smeared with blood and a hand holding her bump. Behind her, the bombed-out ruins of Mariupol’s maternity hospital. More than a dozen people, including women in labour, were injured in the attack in March 2022. The woman photographed, Iryna Kalinina, later died along with her unborn baby.In the three years since then, maternity care in Ukraine has remained under constant attack, with more than 2,000 strikes on medical facilities, including 81 affecting maternal care and delivery rooms. Just last month, Diana Koshyk, seven months pregnant, was killed when a missile struck a maternity hospital in the eastern Dnipropetrovsk region. Continue reading...

Events

3 w. ago Woman once Britain's 'youngest mum' who had baby aged 12 reveals she is expecting fifth child at 31

Tressa Middleton, 31, from Bathgate in West Lothian, Scotland, revealed the happy news following a series of ordeals.

Politics

3 w. ago Japan sees nearly a million more deaths than births as demographic crisis deepens

Asian country suffers steepest annual population decline on record

Events

3 w. ago UK’s most expensive seaside town 'abandoned' by tourists over £10 charge

Salcombe in Devon has been deserted by tourists after it was revealed to be the UK's most expensive seaside town - and a new £10 parking charge has been implemented

Economics

3 w. ago Good Morning Britain star shares congratulations as he makes baby news announcement

Good Morning Britain returned to our screens on Tuesday and Richard Arnold had some very exciting baby news to share with viewers

Politics

3 w. ago ITV Good Morning Britain host congratulates star after issuing baby announcement

Good Morning Britain stars shared their congratulations as exciting baby news was discussed on Tuesday's show

Politics