Belgium Historically in Belgium, the most active group promoting basic income is the movement
Vivant and the philosopher
Philippe Van Parijs, who founded the
Basic Income European network (BIEN) in 1987. A Belgian basic income network affiliated to the BIEN was founded in 2012 in Brussels.
Bulgaria In December 2014, one year after the European basic income initiative, Bulgarian Union for Direct Democracy, a new party, was created. Besides direct democracy the party also included basic income in its program.
Czech Republic The first bigger discussion on universal basic income in the Czech Republic was initiated by philosophers and social scientists
Marek Hrubec and Martin Brabec. Later, they published with
Philippe Van Parijs a book "Všeobecný základní příjem. Právo na lenost, nebo na přežití?" ("Universal Basic Income. Right to Laziness, or Right to Survival?"). In 2013, activists and social scientists joined the European Citizens' Initiative for Unconditional Basic Income, and have created a campaign to support unconditional basic income. In the Czech Republic, unconditional basic income is supported by many individuals, NGOs (Alternativa zdola,
ProAlt, Levá perspektiva, for example), and political parties. It is the program of the
Green Party, the Communist Party, the Pirate Party, and the Party of Democratic Socialism. It is also supported by many Social Democrats.
Finland In the 1970s, Finnish researchers were inspired by Milton Friedman's proposal for a
negative income tax. The
Young Finns advocated basic income in the 1990s. From 2007 to 2011, the centre-right government was interested in adopting a basic income system. However, the SDP and trade unions affiliated with the party were aggressively opposed to basic income. In 2013,
Libera Foundation published a detailed proposal for Life Account ("perustili"), a savings account that allows owners to withdraw money (up to a monthly maximum) even if their balance is negative. Everyone would receive the account at the age of 18 and the initial balance would be 20,000 euros. The initial balance would replace the current student grant system. Life account would resemble basic income. In May 2015, the
Sipilä Cabinet committed to carrying out a Basic Income experiment as part of a government program. In November 2015,
Kela, the Finnish Social Insurance Institution launched a preliminary study to identify the model for implementing the experiment. In 2018, Finland ended the universal basic income experiment. The experiment was temporary.
France Advocates Some of the most well-known defenders of basic income in France are
Benoit Hamon,
Yoland Bresson,
André Gorz,
Baptiste Mylondo,
Yann Moulier-Boutang,
Toni Negri,
Jean-Marc Ferry,
Ignacio Ramonet, ,
Christine Boutin,
Dominique de Villepin,
Karima Delli,
Jean Desessard and
Yves Cochet. The think tank
Centre des Jeunes Dirigeants (CJD) ("Young policymakers trust") also call for a basic income of 400 euros per citizen, per month. The CJD's and
Christine Boutin's basic income proposals are based on
Marc de Basquiat financing model, which demonstrates a way of financing a basic income of about 500 euros for every adult and 250 per child, while other advocates such as Baptiste Mylondo and Jacques Marseille promote a "high enough" basic income, around 750 euros. However, unlike Mylondo and Marseille, De Basquiat's model does not reduce any pension, housing or unemployment benefits.
Germany , a German proponent of basic income The debate about basic income started to grow in the 1980s when groups of unemployed people came out in favor of the reform. For many years the idea was only supported openly by some academics, such as Claus Offe, and a few politicians and organizations. However, after the
Hartz reforms, introduced by the
Cabinet of Gerhard Schröder in 2003–2005 and subsequently modified, a debate regarding basic income was triggered. In 2009, Susanne Wiest, a house wife, made a presentation in the German Parliament about the basic income petition she had initiated and which received support from 52,973 people. In 2010, there were several basic income demonstrations, the biggest in Berlin. In 2011, the
Pirate Party decided to advocate for a basic income alongside minimum wages. Among the political parties in Germany, the Pirate Party officially endorsed basic income in 2011. Inside the
Christian Democratic Union,
Dieter Althaus proposes a basic income model. A group led by
Katja Kipping also promotes basic income inside the leftist party
Die Linke. Also, within the
Social Democratic Party of Germany, the Rhein-Erft-group favors basic income since 2010. Within
The Greens there are also many advocates. In 2016 the
Basic Income Alliance was formed, a single-issue political party that advocates for a universal basic income. A commission of the
German parliament discussed basic income in 2013 and concluded that it is "unrealizable" because: • it would cause a significant decrease in the motivation to work among citizens, with unpredictable consequences for the national economy • it would require a complete restructuring of the taxation, social insurance and pension systems, which will cost a significant amount of money • the current system of social help in Germany is regarded as more effective because it is more personalized: the amount of help provided depends on the financial situation of the recipient; for some socially vulnerable groups, the basic income could be insufficient • it would cause a vast increase in immigration • it would cause a rise in the
shadow economy • the corresponding rise of taxes would cause more inequality: higher taxes would cause higher prices of everyday products, harming the finances of poor people • no viable way to finance basic income in Germany was found In August 2023,
Mein Grundeinkommen calculated that a universal basic income of
€1,200 a month would be affordable for every adult in Germany. Hamburg is the first city and state in Germany where citizens can vote on a
universal basic income during the
2025 Hamburg universal basic income referendum.
Greece Though the idea of basic income is not well known in Greece, several economists have worked on the topic. In 2010, the now dissolved liberal party
Drasi supported a proposal for a basic pension scheme, aiming at simplifying the hundreds of pension schemes in a country being hurt by the debt crisis and pressured by the troika to balance its public budget. Manos Matsaganis and Chrysa Leventi co-authored a study that demonstrate the feasibility of such a proposal. Other heterodox proposals suggest that a Greek exit from the eurozone could be an opportunity to implement a "monetary dividend" for every Greek citizen as a way to manage the financial collapse of the country. The economist and leader of the
MeRA25 party,
Yanis Varoufakis, is a supporter of a universal basic income that is funded from returns on capital rather than taxation, where "a percentage of capital stock (shares) from every initial public offering (IPO) be channelled into a Commons Capital Depository, with the associated dividends funding a universal basic
dividend (UBD)."
Hungary , Hungary, September 2020 Unconditional basic income is endorsed in Hungary by the FNA Group (formed in 2011) and the Hungarian Pirate Party. In 2014 the LÉT workgroup published a proposal, which involved paying 50,000
HUF per month to every adult and 25,000 HUF to every child; 90% of the cost would have been covered by rearranging existing social welfare, the rest by a dedicated new tax. The proposal received no significant political support.
Iceland In October 2014 the
Icelandic Pirate Party put forth a
parliamentary resolution calling on the Minister of Social Affairs and Housing and the Minister of Finance and Economic Affairs to appoint a workgroup to conceive ways to ensure every citizen an unconditional basic income. The Pirate Party currently holds 6 out of 63 seats in the Icelandic Parliament.
Ireland The chief advocacy group is Basic Income Ireland, a member of BIEN. Social Justice Ireland has produced a fully costed proposal for 2012. Before that, the main advocate was CORI (
Conference of Religious of Ireland), one of the social partners. As part of the agreement with the social partners including CORI, a green paper on Basic Income was published by the Irish government in 2002, but there has been no movement on a government level since then. In 2013, during the European Citizen's Initiative campaign, six MEPs from the Republic of Ireland signed a statement in favour of Basic Income.
Netherlands The issue of basic income gained prominence on the political agenda in
Netherlands between the mid-1970s and mid-1990s. In 2015 it was announced that the city of
Utrecht and its local university will be conducting an experiment on basic income. Local authorities are planning to encourage other municipalities to engage in similar experiences.
Norway The
Green Party and The
Pirate Party endorse basic income in Norway. The
Red Party, The
Democrats and The
Liberal Party formerly endorsed a basic income guarantee in Norway. The Liberal Party dropped it from the platform before the
2013 election. But as of the 2021 election again supported the idea as a means to decrease bureaucracy. The NGO BIEN Norge, affiliated with
Basic Income Earth Network works to promote the system in Norway.
Portugal The Portuguese political parties
LIVRE,
People Animals Nature (PAN) and
Volt Portugal support a universal basic income.
Spain Since 2001, the
Red Renta Básica is the national network affiliated to the
BIEN. It gathers researchers and activists for basic income. From 2011 to 2012, the
15-M Movement also contributed a lot in spreading the idea among the Spanish society, and political parties as
Partido Andalucista in Andalusia and
Podemos introduced it as one of its proposals. In 2015, a citizen's initiative received 185,000 signatures, short of the required amount for the proposal to be discussed in parliament. Famous Spanish advocates of basic income include
Daniel Raventos,
David Casassas, and José Luis Ley. According to Economy Minister
Nadia Calviño, Social Security Minister
José Luis Escrivá is coordinating a universal basic income project to help counter the economic impact of the
COVID-19 pandemic, although the scheme is expected to be rolled out indefinitely. The scheme was approved by cabinet on 29 May 2020.
Sweden Swedbank, a Swedish bank, included a piece about basic income in the Baltic region in its Macro Research Report in December 2017. In the first part of the article the bank wrote: "The recent growing interest in UBI has been fuelled by rising fears of job losses due to automation and globalisation, as well as the growing inequality of income and opportunity across some advanced economies. The increasing discontent among citizens who have lost out to automation and globalisation and the rise of the precariat, the so-called new deprived social class facing insecurity and underemployment,15 pose a considerable threat to political stability and democratic values, as indicated by the recent election outcomes in the US, the UK, and some other EU countries. The proponents of UBI argue that greater income security via this measure could be a possible solution to these problems and could help tame voter discontent and prevent them from supporting populists." After having discussed the potential pros and cons with basic income, and after having dismissed the idea of a full basic income, because of the cost. The bank, still, thinks that reforms in the direction of basic income could be on the table. They suggest that a partial basic income could be a good start, or perhaps a once-in-a-lifetime payout for all young adults. "However, some parts of the basic income model could be used in simplifying and improving the efficiency of the existing social security systems. Governments could make the existing benefits more accessible by eliminating unnecessary conditions and means testing in order to reach those who fall outside the system. This could also help cut administrative costs. A more gradual phasing out of benefits would reduce the unemployment trap and increase the incentives for the unemployed to enter the labour market. In order to make the transition to basic income more gradual and limit the cost increases, governments, instead of implementing full-scale UBI, could consider a "partial" basic income that would apply only to new cohorts. Lithuania has taken a step in this direction by replacing the additional non-taxable income with lump-sum cash benefits paid to all children, without regard to family income. Maybe, as a start, a similar basic income or, simply, a once-in-a-lifetime payout could be introduced to young adults, which would at least partly level the playing field for poorer youngsters. However, payments to young cohorts only may be met with resistance from the older ones. Yet another alternative to UBI is a negative income tax..."
Switzerland The association BIEN-Switzerland (affiliated to the
Basic Income Earth Network) promotes basic income in the francophone part of Switzerland. In the German-speaking part of Switzerland a group called "
Initiative Grundeinkommen" is very active in promoting basic income.
The 2016 basic income referendum In 2008,
Daniel Häni and
Enno Schmidt produced
The Basic income, a cultural impulse, a movie that explains and praises the idea of a basic income. With more than 400,000 views, the movie went viral and contributed a lot in spreading the idea among French and German speaking countries. In April 2012 a
popular legislative initiative was launched which aimed at introducing basic income in the Swiss Federal Constitution. The campaign successfully collected enough signatures (126,000) by 4 October, thereby triggering a nationwide popular
referendum in June 2016, making Switzerland the first country where people were consulted by referendum on this issue. The proposal would have given 2,500 francs monthly to every adult and 625 francs to every child. The government estimated the costs to be 208 billion francs per year, most of which could have been covered by abolishing the existing social security system, but the last 25 billion francs would have been only possible to collect by tax raises. The trade union
Syna brought its support for this initiative, but none of the political parties supported the proposal, and both the federal government and the National Council of Switzerland (lower house of parliament) called on the people to reject the proposal by referendum. The main arguments against basic income before the referendum, as interpreted by Martin Farley: • It was a risky experiment • It was a utopian fairy tale with no basis in reality • It would result in inflation if adopted • The Swiss are not poor, so a basic income is not really required • Switzerland already has a very good and effective system of social welfare, so it does not need to be replaced • People should earn their income, not just receive it • The proposal was prohibitively expensive and would require a huge increase in tax • There was no plan in place to fund it In the end, the proposal was defeated, with almost 77% voting against it. 23% voted for it.
Ukraine Though the idea of basic income is not promoted by the government, different tech companies develop and adopt the ideas of unconditional basic income. The most well known example is the Nimses concept. Nimses has a
time-based currency called nim (equals to 1 minute). Every person that joins the system receives 1440 nims per day that can be spent on different goods and services.
United Kingdom Basic Income has been discussed and advocated for in the United Kingdom for much of the 20th and 21st century. It started with the writings by
Bertrand Russell, Major
C. H. Douglas, and Dennis Milner around 1920 (with little if any interaction between them). In 1946 the UK implemented Family Allowances, an unconditional income for the second and subsequent children of every family, and during the mid-1970s this became Child Benefit; an unconditional income for every child. In 1982, Brandon Rhys Williams MP proposed a Basic Income to a parliamentary committee, in 1984 the Basic Income Research Group (now the Citizen's Basic Income Trust) started work, and from 2014 onwards the debate started to take off, among think tanks and academics, in the print and other media, and among some Members of Parliament. Some parties are pro-basic income, most notably the
Scottish National Party, which at its spring 2016 conference backed the principle of a universal basic income to replace the current welfare system. Other parties supporting it are the
Green Party of England and Wales, the
Scottish Green Party, and the
Scottish Socialist Party. On 16 February 2016, then Shadow Chancellor
John McDonnell said that a basic income policy was under consideration by the
Labour Party. In August 2018, he said that Labour hoped to include a proposal for a pilot scheme in its next manifesto.
Guy Standing is perhaps the most well known contemporary advocate of the idea. In his book
The Precariat - the new dangerous class, he blames
globalization for having plunged more and more people into the
precariat, which he analyses as a new emerging
social class. He concludes on the necessity for "governments to provide basic security as a right" through a basic income. Other advocates include
Edward Skidelsky and
Robert Skidelsky, who argued for basic income in their book called
How Much is Enough?, Malcolm Torry who is Director of the UK Citizen's Income Trust,
Louise Haagh, chair of the Basic Income Earth Network, and Annie Miller who co-founded Citizens Basic Income Network Scotland. In 2023 three universal basic income pilot schemes of £1,600 a month each were launched, one in Wales for those leaving care, and in England two micro-projects in Jarrow, in North East England, and East Finchley. ==North America==