ZB ZB
Sport
100 Years of ZB
Live now
Start time
Playing for
End time
Listen live
Listen to NAME OF STATION
Up next
Listen live on
ZB

Listen: 100 Years of ZB Podcast hosted by Mike Hosking

Expert says NZ will need to adjust to aging population amid birth rate drop

Author
Newstalk ZB,
Publish Date
Tue, 18 Aug 2026, 6:24pm
(Photo / Getty)
(Photo / Getty)

Reassurance our sluggish population growth isn't cause for alarm - but instead something to adjust to.

It grew over 36,000 in the year to June, our lowest increase since World War Two.

This brought our population to over 5,300,000.

Former Chief Science Adviser Sir Peter Gluckman says our aging population's playing into this.

"You have to think about the balance between the investment in children and young people at the beginning of life, and maintaining people healthy and productive and contributing to society much later in life." 

LISTEN ABOVE

Take your Radio, Podcasts and Music with you