The latest HSE figures for births in the country’s 19 maternity units estimate 61,902 babies were born last year. This figure represents a decline of 1,844 since 2016 and a precipitous drop from a high of 75,554 in 2009. The annual birth rate stands at 12.9 per 1,000 of population, compared to 16.1 per 1,000 population in 2007.

The only two maternity units to show an increase in births were in Portlaoise Hospital and Mullingar Hospital. The largest fall in births was in Mayo, where the number of babies born last year dropped to 1,547, down from 1,650 in 2016. Even in Dublin a sharp decline was recorded with births in the National Maternity Hospital in Holles Street down by 5.3pc.