French population hits 65.35 million

Population reaches record high in France

Statistics published by the official government agency Insee show that the population grew last year by 349,000. Despite this growth, there wasn't a suddden influx of residents. Instead, the population seems to be growing at a similar rate to that of previous years. 

Figures also revealed that the country's birth rate of 2.01 children per woman is now the second highest in Europe. However, it appears that couples are waiting longer to start a family - 30.1 years was the average age to have your first child in 2011.  

Pascale Breuil, head researcher at Insee, told national newspaper Le Monde that the rise in birth rate was due to perfect conditions in France: "Women can continue to work or not if they prefer, couples can have children, whether married or not, and they also know that they will benefit from a political climate that is favourable to families." 

The latest statistics also show that an astounding seven out of 10 people still live in the same region that they were born in. 

Meanwhile, Provence and the Côte d'Azur have the greatest number of incoming residents, with nearly half coming from other regions. This figure is particuarly true for the number of retired residents in PACA, with 1.12 million people above the age of 65 living in the region, compared to only 550,000 who were born here.    

Breuil told DNA newspaper, "France's demographic history largely explains its current growth."

Sarah Lloyd