Comment by Ani Townsend

Universal basic income would provide everyone with the means to support themselves, and could dramatically change the welfare system, including addressing the huge costs associated with homelessness. Evidence has shown that it would alleviate poverty, be directly beneficial to people’s wellbeing, could radically redistribute wealth and empower entrepreneurial thinking. It is the fairest, most effective way to mitigate the effects of Covid-19, the advance of artificial intelligence, the climate emergency, and continued economic uncertainty on people’s incomes.