Parents discouraged to have big families

'Anti-natal' society discourages parents to have big families

Parents are being unfairly pressurised into having small families, according to a new report.

The study states that the middle-classes are being made to feel guilty about having larger families because of the impact they will have on the environment and the potential damage to career progress.

Think tank Civitas carried out the study which claimed that everything from house prices to car tax makes it much more expensive for parents to raise more than two children.

Described as an 'anti-natal' prejudice against big families, the report states that younge children who grow up with lots of brothers and sisters grow up happier and more balanced than only children.

Colin Brazier, a father of five and presenter on Sky News, wrote the report in which he stated that many British families would like to have more than one or two children but feel they cannot afford to do so.

Brazier counts the property market as a 'contraceptive' because developers now build homes for smaller families and having more than three bedrooms adds two-thirds to house prices in some areas.

He also states that environmental issues are given as reasons to charge bigger families more for services. Brazier says people carriers are facing higher road tax and 'pay-as-you-throw' bin charges are likely to penalise larger households for throwing away more rubbish.