Responding to a dramatic decrease in the birth rate, the Chinese government announced on 31^st May 2021 that couples would be permitted to have up to three children. This change follows the relaxation of birth control policies in 2015 when the long-standing ‘One-child’ policy was replaced by a ‘Two-child’ policy. Although there was a small short-term increase in the birth immediately after the introduction of the new ‘Two-child’ policy regime, it wasn’t sustained. The birth rate returned to a downward trajectory, reaching its lowest ever level of 10.48 births per 1,000 women in 2019.  So why is fertility in China not just staying low but continuing to fall? Read more