15 April 2020updated 11 Dec 2024 4:02pm

Covid-19 has changed my thinking on universal basic income

I'm more open to the scheme than I was before.

A sign sits at the entrance to a job centre in east London on July 20, 2016. Britain's unemployment rate dipped to 4.9 percent in the three months to May, the lowest level since 2005, official data showed on Wednesday. / AFP / DANIEL LEAL-OLIVAS (Photo credit should read DANIEL LEAL-OLIVAS/AFP via Getty Images)

Although I haven’t closed my mind to the idea of a universal basic income (UBI) in principle, I’ve tended to be sceptical of UBI schemes. Very few manage to escape being either inadequate, iniquitous or pointless.

Many fail to offer an adequate income. Thanks to the work of Citizens Advice, we have a good idea how much money people without care requirements need to cover their basic costs without getting into debt: £960 a month for individuals, or £1,700 a month for a couple with children. Most adults therefore need around £11,000 a year. The basic income proposal created by the RSA in 2015 offered less than £4,000 a year.