Array

CANBERRA, Jun 2 (Reuters) Australia is in the grip of a baby boom, figures showed today, after the government urged couples to do their patriotic duty and ''have one for your country''.

Australia recorded 261,400 births in 2005, the highest number since 1992, the Australian Bureau of Statistics said, pushing the national population up to almost 20.5 million.

The baby boom came after Treasurer Peter Costello urged Australian couples two years ago to have more children, saying they should have ''one for mum, one for dad and one for the country''.

''It was a light-hearted way of making a serious point, and I am delighted that at least some families have been taking up the challenge,'' Costello said today.

The government has identified Australia's low fertility rate and ageing population as a key issue.

A government study has warned that the number of people aged 65 or older is set to double by 2042 and the number aged 85 or more would quadruple, while the number of working-age Australians will remain stable.

Costello has urged Australians to have more children, and for older people to remain in the workforce beyond the usual retirement age of 65, to counter what he says is Australia's demographic destiny.

In 2004, Costello introduced a A$3,000 (2,240 dollars) baby bonus, which is paid to the parents of each new-born child, which will rise to A$4,000 from July this year and A$5,000 from July 2008.

The government has also introduced tax breaks to help parents who leave work to look after children, and a range of extra family payments.

Reuters SI DB1146