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Universal Basic Income - a good idea?

(105 Posts)
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humptydumpty Fri 27-Oct-17 13:51:10

It would be instead of UBI.

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humptydumpty Fri 27-Oct-17 13:50:54

A team at UCL has suggested that UK citizens should receive free housing, food, transport and internet access, to counteract the predicted reductions in jobs from the use of robots.

I like that idea a lot but don't see how the free housing could work when there is so much disparity in the size/nature of housing..

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humptydumpty Fri 27-Oct-17 13:48:21

grannysue I believe the idea is that everyone will get paid the UBI so in addition to their earnings if employed.

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grannysue05 Fri 27-Oct-17 13:46:04

There will always be a cut off point or threshold, no matter what sum is finally decided upon.
Therefore people earning, say, £160 pounds a week and are working forty hours for that, will feel hard done by.
However, the idea of one basic income sum for everybody, regardless of intricate mathmatics, is a very good idea.
To cut out queues, delays, worry, benefit offices run by too many staff, form filling ....the list is endless.
Just one payment for all if you are not in work.
Job done, do you think?
Or will it create even more problems?

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humptydumpty Fri 27-Oct-17 12:23:35

Nicola Sturgeon is considering introducing Universal Basic Income in Scotland, a scheme whereby everyone would be paid a basic income of say £150 a week, irrespective of their employment status.

The reason for this thread is dissatisfaction expressed over either people receiving benefits which the poster feels they don't deserve, or disgruntlement from people just over the threshhold for benefits who therefore don't qualify, even though they are only marginally better-off.

Apart from avoiding these problems, such a scheme would mean that the vast majority of benefits would no longer be needed.

Personally I don't know the economics of such a scheme, but I can see that it would hopefully reduce the poverty gap and remove the stigma, not only of claiming benefits, but also, for example, of receiving free school meals (does that still apply?).

What do GNers think?

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