Towards the end of each year, the ABS releases data on the number of births and deaths across the country. The birth data generates significant interest, and more so this year as the fertility rate increased for the first time in many years. While the number of births, and the fertility rate, are important social…
Articles by Simone Alexander
Simone Alexander is a demographic consultant with more than 20 years of experience working in both the public and private sectors. She uses her expertise to blog about demographic trends, housing and planning issues in Australia’s cities and regions.
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Although the release of 2021 Census data is gaining a lot of media attention, the ABS also released updated population estimates at the same time. This new data presents rebased estimates that are tied to the 2021 Census. It is part of the five-year cycle of population estimates produced by the ABS – once the…
One of the more interesting demographic trends in the last two years has been the increased movement of people out of large cities into regional and rural areas. These so-called “flee changers” have local impacts with regard to the demand for services and infrastructure, there is still some question as to whether this represents a…
Queensland is currently the fastest-growing state in Australia. In 2020-21, the population increased by 0.9%, well above the national average of 0.2%. The volume of growth was just shy of 46,000 people. Queensland’s population growth is driven by interstate migration. In recent years, the volume has increased and has accelerated since the onset of the…
In the last couple of years, I’ve lost count of the number of times that I’ve been told that population forecasts are useless because of the impacts brought about by COVID-19. Certainly, I’ve written many blogs that describe the demographic impact of the pandemic, but does this render population forecasts useless? We do live in…
Australia’s population continues to be influenced by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and the policy changes implemented to control the spread. Historically, South Australia has grown at a modest rate, and its population has an older age profile. But more recently, the state has recorded small gains from interstate migration. Will this make a difference to…
Each year the ABS releases data on the number of birth and death registrations across Australia. The data is important as it provides indicators of population change at the local level. Fertility trends differ widely across metropolitan and rural areas. What were the key trends in 2020? How many births were there in 2020? In…
We are very lucky in Australia that we have access to a wide range of quality data that informs the characteristics of our population. But how do we compare internationally? In this blog, I compare Australia’s demographic characteristics with all other countries in the world. This is spatial analysis on a global scale! International statistics…
It goes without saying that the impacts of COVID on population change have been profound. Not only has Australia recorded a net loss of overseas migrants but there have been changes in the age structure as a result. In 2019-20, the population of young adults in Australia declined. This blog looks at the scale of…
Much as I appreciate the ABS releasing population data every quarter, March and September generally have limited interest for me. This year is different. The release of the March 2021 quarter data means there is now a full year to assess the impact of the international border closure on population change. I’ve blogged previously about…