Immigration cannot solve population decline says Musk

(ANSA) - ROME, DEC 16 - Immigration cannot solve the problem of population decline in industrialised countries, billionaire businessman and boss of X, formerly Twitter, said on Saturday.
    "Immigration" cannot solve the declining "demographics" of industrialised countries, Musk told the Atreju political festival of Premier Giorgia Meloni's right-wing Brothers of Italy (FdI) party in Rome, citing the case of China, which will lose 40% "of its population".
    "My advice to all government leaders and people is: make sure you have children to create a new generation," he said.
    Musk has 11 known children with three different mothers, and he took to the stage in Rome on Saturday with one of them in his arms to make the point that "demographics is important".
    Musk urged Italians and populations in other industrialised countries to have children "or the culture of Italy, Japan and France will disappear".
    "We are in danger of no longer having these countries. Italy has borders of course but it is made by Italians, by people," he added.
    Meloni has made reversing Italy's population decline one of the key priorities of her government and the 2024 budget bill still before parliament contains several measures in support of families with children.
    Musk told his audience at the political festival under the theme 'Welcome Back Italian Pride' that Italy is "an incredible country" and "a good place to invest" but added that "companies investing ask themselves: will there be enough people working?".
    "Maybe I'm repeating myself but these are the facts," he added.
    On the climate crisis, Musk claimed to be an "environmentalist" but added that "we should not demonise oil and gas in the medium term".
    "I have the impression that in the short term we are exaggerating on climate change," he said, also criticising environmentalists for making people lose "faith in the future".
    "We must continue to have hope," he added. (ANSA).