I AM appalled by the remarks made by Jayne Maguire, an outreach midwife, regarding the massive 25 per cent birth rate rise in Bolton between 2002 and 2012.

She seems to attribute the rise solely to families “who give no thought to family planning, some of whom treat pregnancy as an after-thought”.

She then goes on to make the quite outrageous claim that “because of the way the benefits system works, it is also very lucrative for some families”. No doubt some feckless families may behave in this way, but I would say they are a very small percentage, despite what one may see on lurid television programmes.

The rise in the birth rate has been a deliberately engineered programme throughout the country over a number of years after a think-tank report, going back over 20 years, was published regarding our falling population.

The rise compares with an increase in immigration, although it is difficult to find information on the ethnicity and background of those giving birth, although it would seem that Jayne Maguire has inside information to which others do not have access.

Bolton Council has produced the following figures, which can easily be viewed on line: the current population of Bolton is 280,100, with the fourth highest growth rate in greater Manchester over the past 10 years. Only Manchester, Salford and Trafford have higher rates. Stockport, Wigan and Bury’s figures are negligible.

The present population of Bolton, according to the council's website, comprises: 20.8 per cent children (0-15 years) — a total of 58,300; 62.9 per cent working age (16-64 years) — a total of 176,100;16.3 per cent older people (65+ years) — a total of 45,700. This gives the lie to the oft-repeated mantra that older people are a drain on the country's resources, a lie which is being repeated everywhere — on television, in newspapers, in focus groups.

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