Could 2017 be the year people take universal basic income seriously?

Could 2017 be the year people take universal basic income seriously?

What if people were paid just for being alive?

It may sound like some radical utopian ideal, but that’s the essential proposal at the heart of a growing movement now drawing mainstream support from a diverse array of economists, policy wonks and Silicon Valley thinkers: Universal basic income.

The idea is appealingly simple: In such a system, a government would guarantee each of its citizens a yearly stipend of enough money to cover a basic standard of living, no strings attached.SEE ALSO: Will universal basic income mean you can quit your job?The… Related Posts Prosecco tops champagne as New Year tipple: […]

Downsizing society

The world is becoming increasingly automated. Jobs that were once done by people are now frequently done by machines instead. This started off in manufacturing, but the coming of self-driving cars will put huge numbers of people out of work ; even lawyers are being replaced by machines . Some reports suggest that machines could do 50% of jobs within the next 30 years . Fifty percent ! What will we do when half the population have been made redundant? How will we cope with such a restructuring of society? To an economist, a job is an income. To […]

Finland Has a New Social Experiment: Giving People Free Money

Finland Has a New Social Experiment: Giving People Free Money

For 2,000 Finns, free money is now a thing. This year, Finland is putting together an ambitious social experiment to see whether a universal basic income might some day be feasible. Starting on January 1, 2000 unemployed Finnish people between 25 and 58 years of age started to receive an income of €560 (about $594) per month, As The Guardian ’s Jon Henley reports .

According to one cost-of-living calculator , that’s just shy of half the cost of a furnished, 900-square-foot apartment in Helsinki. According to the Finnish government , the point of the program is to demonstrate […]

Indian government to endorse universal basic income ‘as way forward’

Indian government to endorse universal basic income ‘as way forward’

Indian government to endorse universal basic income ‘as way forward’, says leading UBI advocate

India’s Chief Economic Advisor has already confirmed country’s annual financial report will discuss free money . India is a rising economy but a substantial proportion of the population remains in poverty Getty ( Independent ) — India is going to endorse a Universal Basic Income (UBI), according to a leading advocate of the system.

The world’s largest democracy will release a report in January stating that UBI is “basically the way forward,” according to Professor Guy Standing, who has worked on universal income pilot projects in […]

It’ll Take More Than “Free Money” To Reform Social Welfare

It'll Take More Than

A Universal Basic Income (UBI) will not fix everything— it’s not supposed to —it’s a start for some people and a boon for everyone. But don’t let the prospect of a little free money stop us from pursuing more progressive regulations and reforms.

UBI is meant to provide a floor —a standard—which no one can fall beneath. But giving people unconditional free money shouldn’t be the end of the conversation, says Ben Spies-Butcher, a Senior Lecturer and Director of the Masters of Policy and Applied Social Research in the Sociology Department at Macquarie University.

In his essay “ Not Just a […]

Could 2017 be the year people take universal basic income seriously?

What if people were paid just for being alive?

It may sound like some radical utopian ideal, but that’s the essential proposal at the heart of a growing movement now drawing mainstream support from a diverse array of economists, policy wonks and Silicon Valley thinkers: Universal basic income.

The idea is appealingly simple: In such a system, a government would guarantee each of its citizens a yearly stipend of enough money to cover a basic standard of living, no strings attached.The concept, in its most elemental form, has been bouncing around circles of academics, activists and policy theorists for decades with […]

Basic Income Won’t Fix Everything, We Need More Innovative Social Ideas

A Universal Basic Income (UBI) will not fix everything- it’s not supposed to -it’s a start for some people and a boon for everyone. But don’t let the prospect of a little free money stop us from pursuing more progressive regulations and reforms.

UBI is meant to provide a floor -a standard-which no one can fall beneath. But giving people unconditional free money shouldn’t be the end of the conversation, says Ben Spies-Butcher, a Senior Lecturer and Director of the Masters of Policy and Applied Social Research in the Sociology Department at Macquarie University.

In his essay ” Not Just a […]

Does the guaranteed income intrest you?

Does the guaranteed income intrest you?

Join Date Location Posts The first comment I will make try to explain to the average person of 1816 why the world of 2016 isn’t a utopia. Of course our times has it problems, serious problems. But we have effectively address many of the concerns that the average individual has had in the world of 1816. We are better fed, clothed, access to more information, etc, etc. You can point at problems throughout the world and even within western civilization but they are the problems spreading the benefits of victory not a see-saw fight against famine and pestilence that […]

Rural Kenyans Are Getting Free Cash Every Month To Test The Concept Of A Basic Income

Rural Kenyans Are Getting Free Cash Every Month To Test The Concept Of A Basic Income

2016 turned out to be a banner a big year for the idea of giving people enough money so they’re no longer poor—otherwise known as a universal basic income (UBI). Around the world, more cities and countries are exploring UBI, including a big new effort in Finland , which launched recently. Millions of dollars of research are going into it in the U.S . The debate has shifted from ‘wow, what a crazy notion’ to ‘let’s see if the crazy thing can work.’"

Aside from Finland, the tech-incubator Y Combinator is also piloting basic income in Oakland, California . And […]

Universal Basic Income Trials Being Considered In Scotland

Universal Basic Income Trials Being Considered In Scotland

Create! Scotland, Universal Income By Libby Brooks, www.theguardian.com January 5th, 2017 Above Photo: Glasgow is the ideal place to test a basic income scheme, said the councillor Matt Kerr. Photograph: Murdo MacLeod for the Guardian

Two councils, Fife and Glasgow, are investigating idea of offering everyone a fixed income regardless of earnings

Scotland looks set to be the first part of the UK to pilot a basic income for every citizen, as councils in Fife and Glasgow investigate trial schemes in 2017.The councillor Matt Kerr has been championing the idea through the ornate halls of Glasgow City Chambers, and is […]