One other way the recession might affect family life is through its
impact on fertility. Britain’s birth rate has increased steadily since
2001 and now averages 1.9 births per woman, the highest level
since 1974. Recession could push it either way: on the one hand,
reduced incomes are likely to discourage people from having
children; on the other hand, a spell of unemployment, particularly
for women, may encourage them to have children now rather
than later when they return to work. Research evidence suggests
that fertility is typically ‘pro-cyclical’, falling in recessions and rising
in recoveries (Ahn and Mira, 2002).