Decline of the housewife

Action: please post comments on the BBC story here. They make no mention of the fact that government tax policy gives a huge incentive for both parents to earn, and that the government policies intended to promote 'choice' in fact benefit only parents who want to enjoy two incomes. The rising costs of housing and childcare seem in part to cancel each other out, if this survey is to be believed.

From the BBC, in part: Now, 2.2 million parents stay at home, down on 2.8 million in 1993, the survey commissioned by uSwitch.com said. ...

The survey found one third of working parents thought their children would have a better quality of life if they stayed at home, and seven in 10 parents would do this if money was no object.

It also said that for 18% of parents with children under two, the main carer had to stay at home because they could not afford childcare. The cost of childcare for the under-twos had risen by 33% in the last six years to £8,268 per year.

Hat-tip to Full Time Mothers.