Please find below our first April update about UBI actions, events and publications:
- UBI Lab Leeds has started a UBI pledge for the West Yorkshire Mayoral Election on 2 May. You can find the pledge here on our website. The pledge asks candidates to
Support calls to pilot Universal Basic Income in West Yorkshire
Lobby government for the devolved powers needed to pilot local UBI schemes
Work with other Mayors across the UK to call for a new social contract, which includes trialling a national Universal Basic Income scheme.
- UBI Lab Network is organising an online panel discussion ‘What could a UBI do for my Union?’ on 8 May (6.30-8pm) with
Bob Buxton from the Yorkshire Party, Andrew Cooper from the Green Party and Steward Golton from the Liberal Democrats have responded that they support Basic Income (BI) pilots in West Yorkshire. The Independent Jonathan Tilt is opposed to Basic Income, while Tracy Brabin from the Labour Party and Arnold Craven from the Conservative Party have not yet responded. You can contact the candidates and congratulate them on their BI position (Bob, Andrew, Stewart) and ask Tracy and Arnold whether they will support BI pilots in West Yorkshire:
Tracy Brabin – Labour and Co-operative Party – tracybrabin4wy@gmail.com
Bob Buxton – Yorkshire Party – bobbuxtonyorkshireparty@gmail.com
Andrew Cooper – Green Party – andrew.cooper@greenparty.org.uk
Arnold Craven – Conservative Party – contact@acforwestyorkshire.co.uk
Stewart Golton – Liberal Democrats – stewart.golton@leeds.gov.uk
Jonathan Tilt – Independent – campaign@jonathan-tilt.co.uk
John McDonnell MP – Labour MP for Hayes and Harlington and former Shadow Chancellor
Vicky Blake – Leeds University UCU Honorary Secretary and former UCU General Secretary contender
Jonathan Rhys Williams – Lawyer GMB Wales and South West and Co-founder of UBI Lab Wales
For more information and free registration, please visit:
https://www.ubilabnetwork.org/events/ubi-lab-what-could-a-ubi-do-for-my-union
Please inform trade union organisations and their members about this important event. Unfortunately most trade unions have not really appreciated the potential of UBI for their activities!
- Retired Sheffield GP Jack Czauderna has written an article about UBI, health and the ‘Peckham Experiment’ in NowThen Magazine ‘ It’s time for bold new experiments to tackle poor health – including a Basic Income’.
- After the online event the discussion paper “Sowing the Seeds of Stability: The case for basic income for farmers, farmworkers and food producers in the UK” produced by Autonomy, Basic Income Conversation and Basic Income 4 Farmers has been published. The Guardian published an analysis on the topic ‘British farmers want basic income to cope with post-Brexit struggles’ and the Big Issue ‘British farmers demand universal basic income to prevent bankruptcy in wake of Brexit’.
- Unfortunately the Labour leader Keir Starmer has expressed his support for skills training rather than UBI in the face of Artificial Intelligence (AI): https://x.com/bloomberguk/status/1668552234920038401?s=48&t=0piLB0-L6InPISlyV1DfJQ (1 min). Obviously he does not or does not want to understand that self-determined skills training and Universal Basic Income are complementary interventions to promote political and economic emancipation of citizens.
- As contrast you may want to read the recent article published in the Morning Star on the topic: After AI: time to embrace universal basic income? As AI advances, the case for universal basic income gains traction, challenging traditional notions of labour organising while offering a viable solution to the decline in the need for work and workers, argues Bert Schouwenburg.
- Congratulations to our friends in Wales: The Welsh Basic Income pilot has been nominated for the Innovation in Politics Award in the Social Cohesion category.
- You may be interested in the Memorandum ‘Basic income as a necessary component of a socio-ecological transformation and key element for climate justice’ published in March this year.
- The Mellon Foundation backed a Guaranteed Income experiment for artists in New York (USA): Guaranteed Income Is Sweeping the Nation. Will It Last?
- Scott Santens tries to correct misunderstandings and debunking misinformation/ disinformation spread about the concept of Basic Income and the evidence behind it. You can watch his video (63 mins) here.
- FRIBIS (Freiburg Institute for Basic Income Studies) has published two policy papers on the topic of empirical methods in basic income research: 1) Does voluntary social cooperation promote liberal egalitarian justice? 2) Decision-Making of Disadvantaged Individuals – A Proposal for an Experimental Extension. The next two online FRIBIS seminars will be on
Social Protection with Leo de Haan (International School of Social Studies, The Hague) and AF Kamanzi (University of Namibia) on 18 April 1-3pm UK time
Social protection, once a peripheral topic in development talks, gained prominence in the late 1990s. Initially seen as too costly for developing nations and primarily benefiting formal sector workers, it evolved with safety net programs emerging in the 1980s to counter the negative effects of structural adjustments. Today, social protection is widely recognized as essential for development, encompassing various elements to enhance livelihoods and address social exclusion. Despite its acceptance, it remains politically contentious. Analyzing key schemes in India, Ethiopia, and Brazil, such as the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act and Bolsa Familia, highlights efforts to combat social exclusion and promote sustainable livelihoods. However, their effectiveness varies, necessitating evaluation through the lenses of protection, prevention, promotion, and transformation. In practice, social protection programs don’t offer a straightforward path out of poverty but aim to provide a safety net, prevent further impoverishment, and foster transformative change. By assessing these programs’ implementation and outcomes, policymakers can better utilize social protection to advance inclusive development agendas.
Zoom Link: https://uni-freiburg.zoom.us/j/66244057843?pwd=eU5rOTlpSTJjcERmUUVnUWhZYmpDZz09
Empirical Normative Research with Tobias Jäger (University of Freiburg) on 25 April 1-3pm UK time
The social contract has a long theoretical history. However, the empirical utilization of this idea is still rarely observed. This presentation focuses on the empirical relevance of social contract experiments to justify normative statements. The foundation of normative goals beyond efficiency is also important for economic science. Further, it discusses the role of social experiments in UBI research and its possible contribution to social policy outputs.
Zoom Link: https://uni-freiburg.zoom.us/j/66244057843?pwd=eU5rOTlpSTJjcERmUUVnUWhZYmpDZz09
- The next UBI Hypotheses online seminar on 25 April, 3-5pm UK time will be on the Catalonian Basic Income Project. You can register for the event here.
- The South African Social Policy Initiative (SPI) invites you to a webinar tomorrow, 16April 11-12pm UK time. The webinar will discuss insights from SPI’s latest policy brief: The Economics of Implementing a Universal Basic Income in South Africa.
Nomahlubi Jakuja, Head of Research will present the insights. Mr Russell Wildeman from UNICEF andMr Dominic Brown from the AIDC will give inputs to the brief. You can be part of the conversation and make invaluable contributions to the work of SPI and colleagues in the promulgation of a UBI in South Africa. You can register at: https://www.spi.net.za/wlpb/
In solidarity and best wishes
reinhard on behalf of UBI Lab Leeds