Ireland could be a trailblazer in introducing a national-level Universal Basic Income, according to a new publication from the Irish Environmental Pillar.
The paper Universal Income and Wellbeing Economy was produced on behalf of the Environmental Pillar’s Circular and Wellbeing Economy Hub by the Cloughjordan-based ecological economics think-tank Feasta and the global advocacy organisation Equal Right.
Universal Basic Income (UBI) is a social welfare system, designed to cover basic living costs, where all citizens or residents receive a regular, unconditional cash payment, regardless of their employment status or wealth.
Ireland’s recent experiments in social innovation – such as the first comprehensive ban on smoking in the workplace, the plastic bag tax, and the Basic Income for the Arts – have garnered international attention and praise and demonstrated that Ireland can be a global pioneer.
Caroline Whyte, Feasta economist and member of the Pillar Steering Committee, said: “It is well-established now that the ecological transition will require a broad economic transformation. Changes are needed not only in production and consumption patterns, but also in overarching economic objectives. Universal Basic Income is a prime example of the type of ‘big thinking’ that’s required to achieve this, and Ireland is ideally placed to lead the world on implementing it.”
Dr Patrick Brown of Equal Right said “This paper makes several distinct contributions to Irish policy debate. To our knowledge, it’s the first systematic treatment of UBI through an Irish environmental lens, connecting an international evidence base to Ireland’s specific institutional, fiscal and ecological context. It also counters two mistaken objections that are sometimes raised: firstly, that UBI would inevitably be a kind of techbro-libertarian Trojan Horse, that’s used as a rationale for defunding or privatising vital public goods such as hospitals and schools; and secondly, that governments must choose between UBI and other needed welfare supports, including Universal Basic Services.”
Dr Brown continued,”Situating UBI within the framework of a ‘wellbeing economy’, designed around human and ecological flourishing rather than GDP growth, reveals connections between income security, ecological behaviour and social resilience that more conventional assessments miss.”
The paper claims that UBI, properly designed and financed, provides the income security that enables flexible and creative participation in the ecological transition instead of compelling people to absorb the transition’s costs with only patchy – or nonexistent – support. It proposes a range of options to fund a UBI while also ensuring that it will reduce inequality and help to optimise economic activity in Ireland.
Dr Oliver Moore, who represents Talamh Beo on the Pillar Steering Committee, commented ”UBI could also be complemented by other measures to further progress the ecological transition, such as tailored income supports for local food producers, ensuring people have access to fresh, sustainable, nutritious local food, while at the same time guaranteeing a fair price and standard of living for producers.”
The paper sets out
- How UBI can be introduced
- How it would work in practice
- What is involved
- Why it is necessary
- Who can access it
- When it should be introduced
The paper also sets out the complementary measures and ‘guard rails’ would be needed to make UBI a success in Ireland, in social and ecological terms. These include:
- A modest Site Value Tax at 1-2%
- The introduction and/or further enforcement of caps on certain types of resource extraction, while reinforcing support for nature restoration by enacting the policies recommended by the Environmental Pillar on Ireland’s Nature Restoration Plan
- a phasing-in process for a suite of sufficiency measures, potentially including, but not limited to: improved support for home retrofitting; local food systems; Community Wealth Building; community renewable energy; Universal Basic Services; a Living Wage; a Green Job Guarantee; and a four-day work week.
- Empirical research and modelling to identify the best pathways and timeline for transitioning Ireland’s taxation base towards the greater use of sustainable commons-based taxation to fund the UBI and other sufficiency measures
The paper was produced with the support of the Irish Department of Climate, Energy and Environment.