I keep coming back to three things when I try to work out why families who stay here are opting out of having kids altogether: student loan debt, housing, and the cost of childcare. Add a student loan that follows you out the door of university or polytechnic — teachers, nurses, physiotherapists, the lot — and doesn’t let up for years, then try finding childcare you can actually afford once you’ve somehow cleared those first two hurdles — and you can see exactly why so many are checking out of the whole idea, or simply checking out of the country. I know folks with a full-time job and a couple of part-time jobs on top, and no matter how hard they work they simply don’t get ahead — one step forward and five steps back.