Europe’s conservative populists pit migrants against babies

Within moments EU of a wedding cake being cut, one of the happy couple’s parents inevitably drops a hint about extending the family tree, nudge nudge. By the time the honeymoon is over, lobbying for sprogs is in full swing. Only when the request is fulfilled do the young parents realise the production of a single offspring merely fuels demands for many more. If such endless nagging by in-laws seems exhausting, imagine such pestering done by national leaders, with and in the role of berating wannabe grandparents.Like much of the rich world, Europe is in the midst of a . No country is producing anywhere near enough babies to sustain its population. This vaguely worries liberals, who wonder about the sustainability of the welfare state as retirees start outnumbering workers. But conservative leaders like Mr Orban and Ms Meloni paint the struggle for babies as existential. To them, families mark the bedrock of an orderly state—as long as they are straight and of local ethnic stock, that is. Holding back on procreating undermines the nation, no less. Even worse are those who think migration might offer a quick fix to the demographic morass Europe finds itself in. Who wants migrants when you can have homegrown babies instead? So make babies, people.