Europe is not being overtaken by chaos because of a single moment of weakness; it’s the slow bleed of a continent that stopped having enough babies to replace itself. Official EU statistics show the bloc’s total fertility rate plunged to around 1.38 children per woman in 2023, with the number of births dropping sharply — a record decline that should alarm every working family and policymaker.
That demographic collapse matters because populations don’t renew themselves by wishful thinking; they need children. The replacement level is about 2.1 children per woman, and Europe’s median age keeps rising as births fall, creating an ageing, pension-strapped society with fewer workers to support retirees and less tax revenue to sustain generous welfare systems.
Faced with fewer babies and an economy that still needs hands in hospitals, farms, and factories, Brussels and national capitals have leaned on immigration to fill the gap. EU data show millions of immigrants arriving in recent years, with immigration now a central factor in population growth for several member states — a predictable outcome when domestic birthrates go below replacement.
Global institutions and economic bodies are explicit: labour shortages driven by ageing and low fertility put migration on the policy table, and governments that feared the political costs of shrinking workforces turned to migration as a quick fix. The OECD and EU research centres all warn that migration can help plug holes in the short term, but it is not a magic wand that reverses demographic decline on its own.
Let’s be clear: this is not a plea to demonize newcomers, many of whom simply seek better lives. It is a critique of the political class that accepted a long-term demographic suicide and then imported a social and cultural transformation as the bandage. Europe’s elites cut incentives for families, promoted policies that made child-rearing harder and more expensive, and now tell citizens migration will cure what they created.
The conservative prescription is straightforward and unapologetic — prioritize families, restore pro-child policies, and secure borders while admitting only those who will integrate and contribute under clear rules. If nations want to protect culture, cohesion, and the social contract, they must choose stable, long-term solutions that rebuild native birthrates rather than outsourcing the problem and weakening national identity.
America should watch closely and learn the right lessons: strong families are national security, stable borders are non-negotiable, and no country should trade its future for a temporary patch of imported labour. If conservatives are serious about patriotism and the future of Western civilization, we must champion policies that make raising children possible and honorable again, not shrug and pretend migration is a cure-all.
