THE SOCIAL DEBATE
Universal Basic Income Grant: What should a payment system in South Africa look like?
South Africa can learn from Brazil
Iowa legislators benefit from government subsidies while blocking assistance to others
Nearly a fourth of the Iowa Legislature benefits from farm subsidies, some to the tune of millions of dollars
Opinion: I’m a venture capitalist, and here’s why I believe we need to guarantee everyone’s basic needs
What if raising the floor—of social benefits like income, health care, housing and more—might actually accelerate our economic growth?
Opinion: Universal Basic Income for a Sustainable Future
A collaborative study conducted by Stanford Basic Income Lab and the Centre for Guaranteed Income Research has compiled data from over 30 pilot universal basic income (UBI) programs across the United States, involving nearly 8,300 participants.
Unlocking human potential through a universal basic income
Floyd Marinescu launched UBI Works to reframe the debate about basic income — and his message is catching on
Monthly payments of $1,000 could get thousands of homeless people off the streets, researchers say
A monthly payment of $750 to $1,000 would allow thousands of the city’s homeless people to find informal housing
A UBI in the United States May Necessitate Land Value Taxes
Towards a Georgist public finance regime for state level universal basic income.
AI is threatening Americans’ jobs. Could guaranteed income provide a safety net?
The once-scoffed at idea of guaranteed income is receiving renewed interest as AI becomes an increasing threat to Americans’ jobs.
Opinion: It’s time to eliminate – and strategically replace – our nation’s welfare programs with UBI
Americans deserve a new system that can introduce an era of socioeconomic mobility and opportunity for all.
Red states fight growing efforts to give ‘basic income’ cash to residents
Basic income advocates say the concept is an effective way of reducing poverty.
Why are so many carers being taken to court for benefit fraud?
A badly designed system and what one MP called ‘shocking ineptitude’ at the DWP has created hardship
Opinion: Basic income is a concept Conservatives should champion
Conservatives have an opportunity to prepare the Canadian economy, labour market, and social policy framework for the radically different economic future that is rapidly approaching.
Indian Coalition for Basic Income Launched to Help Shape India’s Social Policy Future
While India is a rich site of several Basic Income Pilots held by Research and Governmental agencies, there is a recent uptrend in the number of cash-based social policies in several states, especially with evidence that shows a marked increase in several indicators of a better life.
Basic Income: Why It Is Fair and How It Is Financed
Perhaps soon basic income will seem like a worthwhile “thing” in the world, like universal suffrage or the right to divorce.
Nobel Laureate gives lecture at University of Cape Town on universal basic income in the developing world
On 13 March, the University of Cape Town (UCT) welcomed Nobel Laureate Professor Abhijit Vinayak Banerjee, an expert in development economics, for an open lecture on the potential transformative effects of universal basic income in the developing world.
Veteran Basic Income could be the solution the VA has been searching for
Five years ago this February, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) underwent an overhaul of its appellate process when it implemented the Appeals Modernization Act.
Writer Kerry Hudson: ‘Universal basic income just makes sense’
Writer Kerry Hudson: ‘I grew up with the narrative that working-class mothers were the worst’
Hephzibah Anderson
The author on following her acclaimed debut Lowborn with a memoir about motherhood, why her next two books will be thrillers, and the power of toast to bring cheer
How government plans to pay for a Basic Income Grant in South Africa
President Cyril Ramaphosa is looking to try make the shift to a Basic Income Grant a reality following renewed calls in this year’s ANC’s January 8th statement – but questions have arisen as to how the country is going to fund it.
Financial stress linked to worse biological health
People who experience stressful life events or circumstances are more likely to have worse biological health, as indicated by biomarkers involved in the interaction between our immune, nervous and endocrine systems, according to a new study by UCL researchers.
Opinion: A properly functioning social security system is a major stimulus to economic growth
South Africa needs to revisit and rethink the use and role of its social security system, not as a poverty alleviation tool, but as a demand-side economic stimulus to meet short-term economic growth.
How would the Smith-Wyden tax package impact families?
The proposed tax package includes several changes concerning business deductions, international trade, housing, and families.
Why Do We Work So Much?
Technology should have reduced our work hours. Why hasn’t it?
The Child Tax Credit Is Back From the Dead
Two years after the expiration of the expanded child tax credit, a pandemic-era policy that temporarily but dramatically lowered child poverty rates, federal lawmakers are close to a bipartisan deal that may reinstate some version of the credit.
Opinion: Universal basic income for a more prosperous Australia
A universal basic income will not only benefit those suffering from poverty, but will also provide a more stable economy for all Australians. William Bourke reports.
Only one-in-five hungry Canadians use food banks — what’s broken?
40 years on, food banks are doing nothing for the majority of nearly 6 million hungry Canadians. Experts say something needs to change
Scottish independence could see Universal Basic Income introduced, Scottish Greens say
Independence would allow us to ensure a real living wage for all and introduce a Universal Basic Income.
The Shrunken Safety Net Could Help Explain Bad Feelings About Economy
Some people’s lives are harder now than they were three years ago because the government is doing less.
Are young people poised to slam the brake on endless economic growth?
The climate and cost of living crises make belief in expanding GDPs look as stale as last year’s mince pies. But when central governments rely on consumerism to shore up spending, it will be hard for ‘degrowth’ to gain any traction
UBI and a four-day week: ‘We should re-order how we work and live’
At the start of the pandemic, I wrote a piece about a four-day week and a universal basic income (UBI). I highlighted the huge changes that were coming because of AI and the need to go carbon neutral.
The success of the expanded child tax credit shows why anti-poverty programs should be unconditional
We’ve been fighting poverty all wrong
Opinion: Basic income is less radical than you think
I’ve been following debates on guaranteed income for almost a decade, and one thing that’s stood out is that universal basic income (UBI), a regular cash payment to all citizens with no strings attached, is like a Rorschach test.
A basic income scheme for the developing world
If Brazil’s scheme became permanent it would set a global example, as ‘bolsa familia’ did in the 2000s