Women in Scotland having less children

Scotland's economy could suffer from low birth rates. A report by leading Scottish academics said women were having fewer children than those elsewhere in the UK. Half of mothers in Scotland have a first birth before 27.4 years of age, compared with 28.1 years for English women, the report said.

It predicts that by 2017 the country's population may fall below five million for the first time since the 1940s.