Someone said to me recently, “people who have children wear the burden of future society”. It stuck with me, because it is true.
In much of the developed world, many people do not have children. Some do not want them. There is even a sort of virtuousness to it sometimes, as if not having children is a a selfless contribution or helping the environment.
But in a functioning capitalist society, there are two goods that should be recognised. First, having enough children to sustain growth. Second, taking risk and chasing opportunity to create that growth.
We forget the obvious. Children are the future of society. If people do not have children, who drives the bus when you are old? Who staffs the hospital? Who delivers the care you think your money will buy? The idea that wealth alone can secure you in old age is a half truth. Without the next generation, there are no services, no workers, no society.
This matters in a world where fertility rates are well below replacement. In the UK, the average rate is 1.4 children per woman. The rate required is 2.08. We are drifting into a demographic crunch. Yet society does not celebrate those who have children. It should.
That is not to say more is always better. Four children you cannot afford is not a public good. But two or three children you raise and support are. Perhaps childcare should be paid gross of tax. At the very least, we should recognise and celebrate the burden parents carry. They are paying for the future.