Chapter 472: Encouragement of fertility
Chapter 461 – Encouraging Childbirth
Early in the morning, the sunlight gilded the earth with gold color, there were still a few sweetness in the humid air, and the big yellowed trees began to pull out new buds, telling of the arrival of spring.
Today is another good day, after a simple breakfast. Opening a report on the development of the colony, Franz began his day’s work.
Normally, he wouldn’t care about such details, except this time it was a bit special. The Newbrook area had put up a large satellite last year, which had attracted the attention of the Vienna government.
The birth rate of the New Brook region exceeded 5.1% for three consecutive years, which, except for the Woolly Bear, could not be compared to several large European countries.
As an immigrant region, suitable for the majority of the population to give birth, a higher birth rate is normal. However, maintaining this record for three consecutive years drew Franz’s attention.
This era was the era of Europe’s population explosion, and the birth rate of all countries was very high.
The Russians natural European champions, according to the information collected, the Austrian Population Agency to make a judgment, the last decade or so the lowest record of the hairy bear’s fertility rate is 4.92%, the highest record is 5.39%, the vast majority of the time is more than 5.1%.
Well, the numbers don’t compare. Woolly bears have a high birth rate, and that’s because they have an equally high death rate.
The normal death rate for the Russian population in this era is usually around 3.6% and occasionally over 4.0%, again, the European champions.
If we were talking about the birth rate of a normal country, the Russian empire would have run out of people a long time ago.
Looking at Europe as a whole, Austria is also doing well, maintaining a birth rate of around 4.1%, just ahead of the Russians.
To look at the specific birth rate, it is clear: Central Europe has a low birth rate, which has dropped to 3.6% in some areas; Southern Europe has a high birth rate, which can reach 4.5% in some areas.
The more developed the region the lower the birth rate, which has become the biggest problem faced by Franz, if not to change this status quo, refer to the next door to France will know.
As the most open country in Europe, France’s birth rate is generally around 2.6%, and the death rate is almost hovering at 2.3%, maintaining its weak growth rate.
If placed in later times, this birth rate, it is estimated that the French people will be happy crazy. Unfortunately, this era is not insignificant at all, this is the era when everyone is driving full steam ahead to make people.
In the face of the high mortality rate, who dares to play the childless, just wait for genocide!
Franz has accepted the fact that the birth rate is not as good as the Russians, and by the advantage of medical and technical conditions, the population growth rate is finally equalized with the Russians.
Franz also sent out a lot of documents to encourage births, but with little success. In most of the colonies, the birth rate was not high, and with the high death rate, the population growth rate was always very low.
The New Brook region’s birth rate was bursting at the seams, so Franz naturally had to be concerned. This was a big plan for the future, if it could be promoted, it would be a big profit.
This report was not reported by the colonial officials themselves, but Franz personally sent an investigation team to obtain it.
The reason is naturally very simple, in case someone falsifies the data.
Africa is not the South Seas and the Americas, where mixed-race people are impossible. Those areas to get out a bunch of hybrids out, it is really possible to muddle through, as long as the characteristics are not too obvious, it is difficult to distinguish at a glance.
With the bureaucrats’ modesty, it is too normal to fake for the sake of political achievements. So the birth rate in South and Central America has always been on the high side, as long as it is not too much, the government of Vienna will not be pursued, Africa can not follow the conditions.
As a key area of operation, the Vienna government attaches importance to Africa, more than the sum of the colonies in other regions.
In order to ensure the control of the colony, here has always been the focus of the supervision of the region, the autonomy of the bureaucrats have been restricted.
For example: the governor, in other colonies was in charge of the army from the top and the people from the bottom. Here, the governor is also the supreme commander, but only the military officer is in charge of the military, and civil affairs issues are managed by the local government.
Not being able to make up the numbers didn’t mean not being able to fake it. The mortality rate in the colonies has always been high, but with the improvement of local development and the advancement of medical technology, the mortality rate has continued to decline.
If a bureaucrat faked the birth rate, raised the birth rate data, and then extended the previous death rate, it inadvertently raised the number of deaths.
Offset this falsified birthrate with the artificially increased deaths, and the books are wiped clean.
Anyway, the colonial mortality rate can be accounted for as long as there is no increase, while the birth rate is one of the criteria for assessing the performance of local officials.
The talent who came up with this method is said to be an accountant by trade, and is the best at making false accounts and whatnot.
Currently sent by Franz to work in a state-owned mining company that is about to go bankrupt, when the enterprise back from the dead, when will be able to return to the city.
Talent is too rare to waste. If you do a good job, you’ll save a state-owned company; if you don’t do a good job, you’ll have to stay in the mines as a miner for the rest of your life.
……
After reading the report carefully, Franz was convinced that the data was not falsified this time. The measures listed above could indeed stimulate fertility.
The entitlement to all benefits in New Brook is now tied to having children, and the more children you have the more benefits you get.
For example, only parents who have children are eligible for government unemployment benefits. (There is no restriction on those who have rendered service to the country or made significant contributions to society.)
It is also very humane to stipulate that a parent with one child is entitled to one share, while a parent with two children is entitled to two shares, and the cumulative total is not capped. (If one of the spouses is unemployed, a 50% discount is granted.)
This is just one of the incentives to encourage immigrants. As a city of immigrants, housing in New Brook is provided by the city government.
The land is not worth much anyway, and the main cost is the cost of construction, so providing housing is not much of a problem. What the municipality of Newbrook provides are small houses, usually no more than fifty square meters.
Large homes, on the other hand, were purposely set at a high price by the government, just about on par with Vienna’s housing prices, in short, ordinary people couldn’t afford it.
Then the regulations were introduced: anyone who has more than three children can enjoy a discount on the purchase of a house, 40 square meters for each additional child, and for families with more than eight children, the government provides free decoration and comes with a set of furniture.
In addition to these, there are a series of preferential policies, such as maternity leave and maternity subsidies. Although the money is not much, the importance attached by the local government is still reflected.
Even pensions have come out. There are pensions in Austria, only now only those who have merited the country are eligible.
The municipality of Neubrueck has expanded the scope of the pension, so that anyone who has had five children or more is eligible to receive it, which is still calculated according to the number of births, with an increase of thirty percent for each additional child.
This article can be omitted, the average age in this era is still hovering around forty years old, and those who can live to sixty years old to receive a pension are rare.
Austria did not have a pension system, not that Franz did not pay attention to this problem, but simply do not need.
Those who can live to sixty years old and above, family conditions are usually good, if the poor can not uncover the pot, it is impossible to have such a long life.
A series of measures to encourage childbirth would be very unholy for single dogs, Sink families, and families with few children. Unless they have rendered service to the country, these social benefits have nothing to do with them.
Franz even wondered if this was not a traveler messing around. Because they were frightened by the low fertility rate in the latter days, they came up with such extreme population stimulation measures.
No matter what, it worked just fine. As long as the populace didn’t object, Franz naturally wouldn’t have a problem with it.
Since it had already been implemented in the New Brook area and had achieved results, this meant that the resistance of the people would not be too strong.
Utilizing limited funds to stimulate births and increase the population growth rate was of great significance to Austria.
If it plays out this way, maybe Austria’s birth rate will even be able to buck Russia’s trend.
Franz was very skeptical that if this policy became state policy, the European countries would follow suit, and if everyone did it, the world would be spoiled.
He soon dispelled this concern; if you can have children, you have to be able to afford to raise them. In this era, there are many families with five or six children, how many can be supported is a problem.
Before there were condoms, pregnancies were usually uncontrolled. Birth rates are high in all countries, and abandonment rates are likewise very high.
At this time, Franz suddenly realized that compulsory education in Austria had also stimulated population growth; after all, compulsory school meals saved on family expenses.
This was a pleasant surprise, as it had been decided that school meals would be provided as an incentive for parents to send their children to school, and for this reason the pupils had to study for a long time in the sandbox.
It was only after 1860 that it was possible to ensure that all pupils received textbooks. Only since last year has it been possible to receive free distribution of workbooks.
Austria plays with the poorest compulsory education and is expected to be touted on the altar by many literati in the future. After all, there are stories that can be passed on.
Even now, the sandbox is not lost. After all, paper is still very expensive now, and the school-issued workbooks still do not meet the demand.
Franz immediately decided to pass on the meaningful sandbox. Whether to make a show of it and let his sons use it as well is a question worth pondering.
In the end, he decided to face, it is too fake, no one will believe it when it is passed on, and more than likely it will be laughed at.
This child perverted population stimulus program, Franz is not prepared to promote their own, directly forwarded to the prime minister.
A good emperor is not able to rob the cabinet work, anyway, the prime minister is going to retire, just before leaving to implement this work.
Otherwise, if a new person comes up, his or her own prestige is not enough, it is hard to say whether he or she can withstand the pressure to promote this plan. The flak is inevitable, or at least the liberals will spray the government with it.
(End of chapter)