by Yannick Vanderborght | Oct 6, 2012 | Research
This article reviews Keyne’s 1930 prediction that economic growth would so make possible the 15-hour workweek. The author, John Quiggin, argues that the failure of the prediction to come true happened not because of a failure of economic growth but because of policy decisions that have concentrated the gains of economic growth on people at the top of the income distribution. As a part of the solution, he argue for a guaranteed minimum income (another word for a basic income guarantee). John Quiggin is a professor of economics and the University of Queensland in Australia. He is the author of Zombie Economics.
The article is online at: https://www.aeonmagazine.com/living-together/john-quiggin-keynesian-utopiav1
by Karl Widerquist | Oct 3, 2012 | Research
In the article published in Winning Free Press, Mary Agnes Welch argues that an experiment done in Dauphin province of Canada around 40 years ago regarding the experiment of unconditional basic income was a success and should be reapplied. The topic was discussed in a conference hosted by Winnipeg Harvest at University of Manitoba. The experiment provided an unconditional basic income guarantee to every low-income person in Dauphin whether or not they were eligible to receive welfare. The results of the Dauphin experiment showed an improvement in health, a lower high school dropout rate, and people did not stop working just because they were receiving a guaranteed income. The experiment was stopped because the government lost interest in it. Welch further informs that the city of Dauphin is interested in having the experiment again. However, it does not fit the new strategy of the government that follows the policy of moving people back to work.
Welch, M. A. (2012). An End to the Perpetual War Trap: Guaranteed Incomes Debated. Winning Free Press, retrieved from: https://www.winnipegfreepress.com/breakingnews/an-end-to-the-perpetual-welfare-trap-167004295.html.
by Yannick Vanderborght | Sep 28, 2012 | Research
This opinion piece is published on the website of the French-speaking RTBF, the Belgian Public Broadcast. Its author, Pierre-Yves Ryckaert, is one of the founders of the Belgian basic income network, which was recently recognized by BIEN (September 2012). In this piece, Ryckaert briefly summarizes some of the core arguments in favour of a basic income.
See: https://www.rtbf.be/info/opinions/detail_revenu-de-base-utopie-ou-necessite?id=7845325
Belgium’s basic income network: https://basicincome.be/
by BIEN Ireland | Sep 19, 2012 | Research
This new book by Danny Dorling (University of Sheffield) includes a 8 pages discussion of basic income in the British context. Dorling seems to be very supportive of the idea, including at EU-level: “Imagine how much money would be saved”, he writes, “if a basic income one day replaced all the numerous different benefit and taxation systems existing accross the whole of the European Union. How else could Europe ever have a unified system of social security to go with its free movement of labor?” (p.160).
Full references: DORLING, Danny (2012), The no-nonsense guide to equality, Oxford: New Internationalist.
For further information on the book, see:
https://www.dannydorling.org/books/equality/Homepage.html
by Yannick Vanderborght | Sep 17, 2012 | Research
This publication by Ronald Blaschke is issued by the Rosa Luxemburg Stiftung, tbe Berlin-based research centre of the left-wing party Die Linke. It includes the following sections:
- Short history of the idea of a basic income in Europe and the US
- The idea of a basic income becomes the political call of a wide, but politically differently coined movement in Germany
- The European Basic Income Movement
- Market liberal and emancipatory approaches to reasoning for and design of a basic income
- The European Basic Income Movement – Questions
Full references: BLASCHKE, Ronald (2012), From the Idea of a basic income to the political movement in Europe, RLS papers, August 2012
For the PDF, see:
https://www.rosalux.de/publication/38626/from-the-idea-of-a-basic-income-to-the-political-movement-in-europe.html
by Karl Widerquist | Sep 15, 2012 | Research
SG Hard Truth: Hard Truths to Keep Singapore Going, July 24, 2012
This article argues that negative income tax is a bold alternative that fits Singapore better than other policies. Erik Stern writes, the negative income tax, “lets the labour market determine the wage that matches the skill set. It allows the government to decide what the base wage should be, for each level of employee or type of job, not only the minimum level.” The writer is president of Stern Stewart & Co, a business consultancy
This article was originally posted on Business Times Premium at:
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/premium/editorial-opinion/opinion/growing-need-fairness-and-respect
It was reposted and is currently online at:
https://sghardtruth.com/2012/07/25/growing-need-for-fairness-and-respect-negative-income-tax-is-better-than-welfare-or-workfare-for-the-unemployed/
