by Stanislas Jourdan | Apr 4, 2016 | News
In a recent interview with ‘The Economist’, Yanis Varoufakis says basic income is an ‘absolutely essential’ approach for the future of social democracy.
This is a major endorsement from a rising star of the European left. Varoufakis is a Greek economist who served as Finance Minister of Greece under the first Syriza government installed in January 2015. He recently launched ‘Democracy in Europe Movement 2025’ (DiEM25), with the aim of transforming the European Union from an elitist technocracy into a transparent and democratic institution that serves people’s interests.
In the interview, Varoufakis links the case for a basic income to the future of social democracy:
Today we are facing a serious danger of large masses of people who have low economic value. This is a powder keg in the foundations of society. Making sure that the great wealth-creation which capital is capable of does not light this dynamite — the basic income approach— is absolutely essential, but it is not part of the social democratic tradition. Think about it. The post-war consensus was all about national insurance, it was not about basic income. Now, either we are going to have a basic income that regulates this new society of ours, or we are going to have very substantial social conflicts that get far worse with xenophobia and refugees and migration and so forth.
Further on, he adds:
So what do we need to do to capture hope? That is the issue. In the 50s and 60s the dream of shared prosperity was that which gave hope. (…) So I think the basic income approach is capable of doing this as long as (…) you can explain to them where the money will come from, that it will not be simply debt, that we are going to generate a lot more income and a chunk of it is going to fund this. But we, the Left, must not be fearful.
Surfers should be fed
Varoufakis also mentions the famous controversy initiated by Philippe van Parijs and John Rawls about whether ‘surfers should be fed’. Varoufakis stands with van Parijs:
I gave a talk some time ago in the United States and said: yes, surfers in California must be fed by the rest of us. We may not like that, we may feel they are bums, but they deserve a basic income too.
OK, they don’t “deserve”, but they should have a basic income, because this is the way to stabilise society. But you need politicians that are capable of going out there and saying: You see that lazy bum over there that you hate? We should feed him. And we should make sure he has a house. Because if he does not have a house and he gets sick and so on, he is a greater burden for all of us.
It is the first time Varoufakis has explicitly endorsed basic income, but he has made allusions to it in in the past.
Back in 2010, he co-authored with Stuart Holland a report called ‘The Modest Proposal’ in which he elaborated four proposals to fix the structural crisis of the European monetary union. Under his 4th proposal, the Emergency Social Solidarity Programme (ESSP), Varoufakis developed the idea of implementing an EU-wide food stamp-style scheme as an emergency measure to reduce poverty, to unify Europe and to redistribute across all European states the trade surplus accumulated by countries like Germany. Such a scheme could even be financed by the European Central Bank:
CC picture: EU Council Eurozone
by Stanislas Jourdan | Feb 25, 2016 | News
Paris was the ‘place to be’ for basic income last Thursday, February 4th, at a high-profile conference featuring key basic income personalities from France and beyond.
The event, which was organised by the liberal think tank Génération Libre, was held at the famous Salle Gaveau, and was attended by about 600 people.
This conference united diverse individuals, with myriad different backgrounds and values, around one common interest: basic income. Attendees included prominent foreign basic income supporters, such as Belgian philosopher and political economist Philippe van Parijs and Brazilian politician and economist Eduardo Suplicy, as well as French politicians from left to right — including former ministers Delphine Batho and Alain Madelin and European parliament members Karima Delli and Sylvie Goulard — in addition to members of the civil society, entrepreneurs, and basic income sympathizers who were simply curious to know how the idea is progressing in France.
Economist Marc de Basquiat launched the show with a presentation of how basic income could fix the complexity and inefficiency of the French tax-benefit system, and introduced key steps to move forward the implementation of a basic income. He also presented the results of a microsimulation of the redistributive effects of a basic income scheme in France. It showed a modest increase in social contribution from wealthy households, while the poorest, and especially families would benefit most.
Next, Jean-Eric Hyafil, an economist and member of the French Movement for a Basic Income (MFRB), delivered a presentation in which he emphasized the rapid growth of the movement in the past few months: “basic income had never known a surge of interest such as the one we are living know,” he said.
After these opening talks, the floor was given to Philippe van Parijs and Eduardo Suplicy, both prominent figures of the basic income movement, historian Laurence Fontaine, and Lionel Stoléru, known as a historical proponent of the negative income tax in France in the 70s.
These four panelists laid out the philosophical and economic justifications for the basic income. Philippe van Parijs stressed the three core principles of basic income – a basic income must be universal, unconditional and individual – and stressed that basic income is, first and foremost, a matter of freedom. Lionel Storélu called for a better integration of fiscal and social systems, something basic income would eventually make possible.
The liberal thinker and former minister of Economy was the only dissent voice among the speakers. He gave a very critical speech, in which he claimed that basic income would encourage idleness. As he stated, “In wanting to do too much, you risk losing effectiveness in the fight against poverty.”
Other speakers — including Diana Filippova (Ouishare), Benoit Thieulin (National Digital Council), and entrepreneur Yann Hascoet (Chauffeur Privé) — were able to relay their firsthand experience in the new digital economy.
Thieulin, co-author of an important report on the Transformations of Work in the Digital Era ordered by the Ministry of Labor, justified basic income on the ground that we were “facing an unprecedented and much deeper upheaval than the industrial revolution. It is thus not realistic to try adapting the new digital assets to fit in the old socio-economic frameworks”. According to Thieulin, basic income allows a smooth transition toward the new economy.
“We keep saying we tried everything to fight unemployment. Well no, we haven’t tried basic income!” – Benoit Thieulin
Following Thieulin, Diana Filippova delivered a talk in which she argued that “basic income would enable a better redistribution of the wealth originating from the digital labor, and in particular the profits made from personal data collected through social networks.”
Politicians beyond borders on basic income
After the talks from the representatives of the new digital economy, politicians took the stage at the conference. These political discussions showed that, in spite of the ideological differences, it is still possible to have a common goal – which, in this case, is introducing basic income into public debate. As Frédéric Lefebvre, from the right-wing party Les Républicains, claimed, “The government has no right to miss out on this debate.”
The Socialist Party’s Delphine Batho, former Minister of Ecology, also highlighted that “basic income is not just about giving a handout, but it is about entering into a new ecological, digital and social model.”
Sylvie Goulard, member of the European Parliament (MEP) from the Liberal party, expressed her interest in the idea. As president of the parliamentary intergroup on poverty, she argued that poverty implies a significant deprivation of freedom. According to Goulard, a European basic income would make sense: “I have never believed in a complete harmonisation of social systems in Europe … However, the idea of guaranteeing a decent income for all across Europe could be shared.”
Member of the European Parliament Karima Delli insisted that basic income is part of an emancipatory project. It should allow a transformation of the economy by allowing new forms of work. “It will allow people to ask each other: what do you want to do with your life?”
Too soon to decide on an appropriate level
Both Goulard and Lefebvre agreed that, importantly, it is not yet time to decide upon the level of basic income. “There is still a lot of work to do and we need a democratic debate between possible options after we have appraised works on this,” Goulard said.
As this conference showed, basic income is no longer the utopian dream that it was considered not so long ago. In the past few months, all eyes have been turned towards the Finnish initiative to experiment with basic income; more recently, however, attention has focused more and more on how basic income might evolve in the French society, and politicians from both sides of the spectrum have started to officially support the idea.
Indeed, Ministers are discussing the idea even at the level of the national government. After the declaration of Minister of Economy Emmanuel Macron, stating that basic income was an interesting idea we should study further, the Minister for Labour Myriam El Khomri agreed that it was “a beautiful idea that we should consider.” Her statement followed the report handed out by the National Digital Council to the Ministry of Labour at the beginning of January, supporting basic income as one out of 20 possibilities that might help to cope with labour evolution due to the digitalization of the economy.
In the space of a couple of months, 3 amendments on basic income have been presented to the National Assembly, from representatives of parties on the left as well as the right.
The next important event will take place at the Finnish embassy in Paris on the 3rd of March, organized by the French Movement for a Basic Income (MFRB). Then, on March 9th, a motion tabled by Green Senator Jean Desessard will be debated at the French Senate.
Nicole Teke and Stan Jourdan
by Stanislas Jourdan | Feb 23, 2016 | News
Finnish basic income experiments: a model for France?
Thursday 3rd March, 19h
At the Finnish Embassy in Paris
With Olli Kangas, Martine Alcorta, Arnaud de l’Épine, Jean-Éric Hyafil
One year ago, the new Finnish government committed itself to run local basic income pilots, in order to assess its impacts in case it would implement UBI at national level.
The move attracted an unprecedented level of attention. What are the exact proposals being considered? How to guarantee the scientific quality of such experiments? And what are exactly the ambitions of the Finnish Center-Right government? Is the approach relevant for France where pilots are also being discussed?
The French Movement for Basic Income (MFRB) is pleased to invite you to join the conversation with our key speakers:
- Olli Kangas, head of Research at KELA (the Finnish Institute for Social Protection)
- Martine Alcorta, Regional Council Member in Aquitaine Limousin Poitou-Charente. She is pushing for a basic income pilot in the region, where a motion was adopted last year.
- Arnaud de l’Épine, economist, member of the think tank Ars Industrialis.
- Jean-Eric Hyafil, Phd researcher, founding member of MFRB
More info here.
Registration: nicole.teke@revenudebase.info
by Stanislas Jourdan | Feb 4, 2016 | News
Long-time supporter of basic income François Blais has been appointed back as Minister of Employment and Social Solidarity and tasked to work on Guaranteed minimum income.
As a consequence of a ministerial reshuffle, François Blais has been displaced from the ministry of Education back to Québec’s Ministry of Employment and Social Solidarity.
Blais had previously been appointed Minister of Employment and Social Solidarity after the April 2014 General Election in Canada’s province. One year ago he was appointed to the Ministry of Education.
“Minister François Blais will work on the improvement of our income support instruments in the direction of a guaranteed minimum income, a field in which he has strong expertise,” Québec’s Prime Minister Philippe Couillard explained in a statement to the press.
“I am serious about it” said Couillard in an interview. “We look at what other countries are doing like in Finland. I find the idea very seductive.”
“On the one hand it simplifies the State, on the other it maintains people’s dignity. The combinaison is excessively interesting.”
Blais is BIEN member since the 1990s. He investigated the concept while holding the post of Professor of Political Science at Laval University, Québec City. In 2002 he co-wrote a book entitled Ending Poverty: A Basic Income for All Canadians, and he reiterated his support for basic income when he joined the government in 2014.
“A perfect political storm”
The ministry reshuffle may indicate a change of direction for the liberal government led by Couillard. Blais’ predecessor Sam Hamad has been pushing a reform which would involve more sanctions to unemployed people who would refuse job opportunities. The bill has sparked a lot of criticism among anti-poverty group and leftist parties in Québec.
“It’s the perfect political storm and Quebec is in the unique position to lead what could be the most fundamental change in western social policy since the introduction of medicare.” comments Peter Wheeland on CultMontreal.com.
Blais’s reappointment however does not make unanimity. In particular, the Left-Independentist and pro-basic income party Québec Solidaire expressed its concerns with the return of Blais to the Ministry for Social Affairs. Blais himself was heavily criticized during his first mandate as Minister for pushing cuts in social benefits.
by Stanislas Jourdan | Jan 28, 2016 | News
Critics of basic income have been proven wrong once again. Giving everyone the means to survive would not make people lazy. A new opinion poll carried out in Switzerland shows that only a tiny fraction of the population would stop working if they had a Universal Basic Income (UBI). What is more, most young people believe UBI will be implemented in the future.
The survey was conducted by DemoSCOPE and released on January 27, 2016 (you can read the full results here). Among the 1076 respondents, only 2% said they would stop working completely, while another 8% said they would ‘rather’ stop working. This trend is also persistent among the youth, were only 3% said they would stop working. However, about a third of the respondents think “others would stop working.”
53% say that, if they receive a UBI, they would spend more time with the family. 54% of the Swiss would like to pursue further education, while 22% in total would want to start a business or be self-employed.
67% believe basic income would “relieve people from existential fears”
The survey shows another striking result: 67% of the respondents, and particularly the youth, think basic income would “relieve people from existential fears.”
With a basic income, 40% would engage more in voluntary work, a trend that is even more important among supporters of the idea (60%).
The campaign for basic income in Switzerland is now entering an historic phase. After 125,000 Swiss citizens had signed a popular initiative back in 2013, a nationwide referendum will be held on June 5 this year, despite the opposition of both houses of parliament last year.
A majority (56%) of the respondents think basic income will never happen, but 16% think it will be implemented after more than 10 years, and another 15% think that it will take more than 25 years. Only 3% of Swiss people think basic income will be implemented after the referendum.
People under 35 are more optimistic: 58% of them are confident that basic income will become a reality in Switzerland.
The survey results are encouraging for the basic income movement. According to the campaign group Generation Grundeinkommen,“the Swiss are ready for a universal basic income!”
