Britain’s Royal Society, one of the most prestigious scientific bodies in the world, with Isaac Newton himself as one of the Founders, has issued a report calling for contraception for all women, the stabilisation of the world’s population,  and the reduction of high consumption in rich countries to avoid “a downward spiral of economic and environmental ills”.

If 9 billion people are to have any sort of decent life in 2050 the issues of consumption and birthrate have to be put top of the agenda for politicians, and the opportunities and wealth of the world must be better distributed.

Politicians, (afraid to cause apoplexy in the Vatican and among mullahs and others – my comment), have carefully avoided the issue for decades.  At today’s rate of population  growth developing countries will have to build a city of a million people every 5 days until 2050.

The number of people is not as important, says the report, as the inequality.  We have to bring the 1.3 billion people living on less than$1.25 a day out of absolute poverty.

(The Guardian Weekly 4-10 May)

My comment:  it won’t happen.  They are right, but it won’t happen.  The whole Western world is going politically rightward, education is getting worse, and jobs with real content are getting fewer.  People might claim to be of goodwill, but to most the issue of people on $1.25 a day is not a primary concern.