A French mayor has issued a decree pledging free handouts of Viagra to all couples in the village - including newcomers - in an unorthodox attempt to boost the local birth rate and keep its school open.

With the number of babies falling, Jean Debouzy, mayor of Montereau, population 650, in the Loiret department south of Paris, decided to take the bull by the horns.

"The mayor is in favour of distributing little blue pills," read the text.

The decree stipulates that “pills will be handed out to couples between 18 and 40 in order to give them every possible chance to conceive and thus preserve the schools” in his and a neighbouring village under his charge.

He also said he was ready to hand out special one-off “bonuses” for any new babies born, as an incentive.

Falling birthrates are putting pressure on the local schools, he said.

“One or two of four classes could shut…we want our children to stay in Montereau,” the mayor told France 3, the local TV channel, saying that without more babies, children would have to travel to neighbouring areas for education.