The e61 Institute think tank released an analysis showing how baby bonus handed to parents by the Howard government worked to stimulate births, at least initially.
In 2004, the Howard government implemented a universal Baby Bonus—$3,000 per child after birth, later boosted to $4,000 and finally $5,000—to encourage couples to “have one for mum, one for dad, and one for the country”, as then-Treasurer Peter Costello famously stated.
The e61 Institute found that Australia’s birth rate, “which had been flat or declining, jumped sharply at the point the policy would start affecting behaviour. This pattern strongly suggests that the Baby Bonus led some families to start having children who otherwise might not have at that time”.
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