For two years, thirty British citizens will receive 1,850 euros per month without having to work. This is not a lottery-winning prize, but a test that the Autonomy think tank plans to carry out to demonstrate the effects of introducing a universal basic income (or basic income as it is renamed in our latitudes). fight poverty. For the UK, this is not an absolute novelty: in Wales, only this time with government funding, around 500 young people at high risk of social exclusion have received a check of the same value since last July. Also, in this case, the pilot project takes two years. But how do projects work in detail? And why did British politics and NGOs start such experiments?
Before going into details, it is necessary to make a clarification: both experiments differ from the citizen’s income in a fundamental respect: they do not associate the use of subsidies with the obligation to actively seek employment. In Wales, Mark Drakeford’s Labor government decided to invest £20m (just over €23m) to issue a check to 500 young people leaving a community for minors (detached from) and that they have to face the world of work (or job training) without a family to support them. In addition to a monthly budget of 1,850 euros, these young people will receive individual advice and support to better manage their finances and attend a training course.
The Wales project, however, does not intend to stop there. Care leavers: After the results are evaluated, the government can also transfer the basic income to other weaker members of society. “We are in the midst of a cost-of-living crisis like no other, and so we need new ways to support those who need it most,” said Jane Hutt, Minister of Social Justice. We will examine whether it is an effective way to support
The Autonomy project is going along the same lines, and unlike the project in Wales, it does not target only young people leaving communities for minors: 30 participants will be chosen at random from applicants (20% of the community with disabled spaces) and are not answered by the researchers during the examination period. Otherwise, they will receive an unconditional monthly allowance. In parallel, the researchers will follow another group of people (a control group in sociological jargon) who will not earn a basic income. A comparison between the two groups will serve to understand the benefits and risks of basic income.
“Our society will need some form of basic income in the coming years amid climate change, the technology leap and the industrial transition,” says Will Stronge, research director at Autonomy. The allowance of 1,850 euros per month, he continues, “is a substantial amount. The universal basic income usually covers people’s basic needs, but we want to see what impact this unconditional lump sum has on people’s mental and physical health.” choose to work or not to work.” According to Stronge, “all the evidence” so far confirmed shows that such measures “directly reduce poverty and improve the well-being of millions of people: the potential benefits are too great to ignore,” he concludes.
Source: Today IT
Karen Clayton is a seasoned journalist and author at The Nation Update, with a focus on world news and current events. She has a background in international relations, which gives her a deep understanding of the political, economic and social factors that shape the global landscape. She writes about a wide range of topics, including conflicts, political upheavals, and economic trends, as well as humanitarian crisis and human rights issues.
