Why there has been a sharp drop in births in Victoria

There’s been a sharp drop in births in Victoria.

And it’s being blamed on lockdown.

Victoria recorded nearly 70,000 births in the year to March 31, down 10 per cent on the year-to-year period before.

The data was recorded by the Australian Bureau of Statistics.

Analysts found the number of births in Victoria had been driven down, as people struggled with economic uncertainty because of the lockdowns.

Another theory is fewer women are accessing IVF due to lockdown.

All states in Australia, except Tasmania, recorded a decline in births over the period, but Victoria suffered the sharpest fall.