UK bucks trend of plummeting teen birth rate

Date: 13/06/02

NEW research reveals that the number of teenage mothers in many EU member states is plummeting.

Austria, Denmark, France, Germany, Italy and Sweden have reduced their teenage birth rates by three-quarters over the past 30 years, according to a report from the United Nations Children's Fund (Unicef).

Four other member states, Belgium, Finland, Greece and the Netherlands, have seen a reduction of two-thirds or more.

However, the UK bucks the trend and still has the highest teenage birth rate in Europe, according to the report. In the UK, about 25 of 15-year-olds and 50 of 17-year-olds have had sex.

Another key finding of the study was that across 13 EU countries, women who gave birth as teenagers are twice as likely to be living in poverty.

The report said: 'Teenage births today are seen as a problem because they are associated with a range of disadvantages for the mother, for her child, for society in general and for taxpayers in particular.

'Giving birth as a teenager is believed to be bad for the young mother because she is more likely to drop out of school, have no or low qualifications, be living in poor housing and suffer from depression.'

Report of a study by the United Nations Children's Fund (Unicef).