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The [[fertility rate]] in Australia has dropped over the last generation below replacement levels, meaning that without immigration, Australia's population would both age and decline, raising the question of long-term social and cultural sustainability.
In 2006, Treasurer [[Peter Costello]] warned Australians to increase their birth rate to replacement levels or run the risk of the country's population composition being fundamentally transformed by immigration. He stated: "Increasing immigration to cover natural population decline will change the composition of our population and raise concerns about social dislocation." <ref name="popdecline">Oakes, L. (July 19, 2006) "It's the end of the world as we know it", National Nine News. Retrieved 04 June 2007 from http://news.ninemsn.com.au/article.aspx?id=117684</ref>
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