In this book, a group of specialists describe the type of society in which unconditional income would be legitimate. In doing so, they question and clarify some of the central principles of modern political philosophy.

Providing a basic income to everyone, rich or poor, active or inactive, was advocated by Paine, Mill, and Galbraith but the idea was never taken seriously. Today, with the welfare state creaking, it is one of the world’s most widely debated proposals. Philippe Van Parijs and Yannick Vanderborght present a comprehensive defense of this radical idea.

A brilliantly reported, global look at universal basic income—a stipend given to every citizen—and why it might be the answer for our age of rising inequality, persistent poverty, and dazzling technology. Imagine if every month the government deposited $1,000 into your checking account, with no strings attached and nothing expected in return. It sounds crazy. But it has become one of the most influential and discussed policy ideas of our time. The founder of Facebook, President Obama’s chief economist, Canada and Finland’s governments, the conservative and labor movements’ leading intellectual lights—all are seriously debating versions of a UBI. In this sparkling and provocative book, economics writer Annie Lowrey looks at the global UBI movement. She travels to Kenya to see how a UBI is lifting the poorest people on earth out of destitution, India to see how inefficient government programs are failing the poor, South Korea to interrogate UBI’s intellectual pedigree, and Silicon Valley to meet the tech titans financing UBI pilots in expectation of a world with advanced artificial intelligence and little need for human labor. Lowrey also examines the challenges the movement faces: contradictory aims, uncomfortable costs, and most powerfully, the entrenched belief that no one should get something for nothing. The UBI movement calls into question our deepest intuitions about what we owe each other. Yet as Lowrey persuasively shows, a UBI—giving people money—is not just a solution to our problems, but a better foundation for our society in this age of marvels.

Shouldn’t everyone receive a stake in society's wealth? Could we create a fairer world by guaranteeing income to all? What would this mean for our health, wealth, and happiness? Basic income is a revolutionary idea that guarantees regular, unconditional cash transfers from the government to all citizens. It is an acknowledgement that everyone plays a part in generating the wealth currently enjoyed by only a few and would rectify the recent breakdown in income distribution. Political parties across the world are now adopting this innovative policy and the idea generates headlines every day. Guy Standing has been at the forefront of thought surrounding basic income for the past thirty years, and in this book he covers in authoritative detail its effects on the economy, poverty, work, and labor; dissects and disproves the standard arguments against basic income; explains what we can learn from pilots across the world; and illustrates exactly why basic income has now become such an urgent necessity.

Advocated (and attacked) by commentators across the political spectrum, paying every citizen a basic income regardless of their circumstances sounds utopian. However, as our economies are transformed and welfare states feel the strain, it has become a hotly debated issue. In this compelling book, Louise Haagh, one of the world’s leading experts on basic income, argues that Universal Basic Income is essential to freedom, human development and democracy in the twenty-first century. She shows that, far from being a silver bullet that will transform or replace capitalism, or a sticking plaster that will extend it, it is a crucial element in a much broader task of constructing a democratic society that will promote social equality and humanist justice. She uses her unrivalled knowledge of the existing research to unearth key issues in design and implementation in a range of different contexts across the globe, highlighting the potential and pitfalls at a time of crisis in governing and public austerity. This book will be essential reading for anyone who wants to get beyond the hype and properly understand one of the most important issues facing politics, economics and social policy today.

This book offers an introduction to the important idea and practice of unconditional basic income, which is becoming a topic increasingly discussed not only among researchers but also among citizens and the politicians who represent them. The topic is also increasingly making its way into the mass media. Unconditional basic income is a financial sum that is provided to all citizens (or otherwise legally defined residents) by the state (or a city, a county etc.) at regular intervals (usually monthly) without any conditions being attached, i.e. regardless of whether the citizen has other income from wages or other sources, regardless of age, sex and gender, marital status or other characteristics. The provision of a basic income enables citizens' basic needs to be met and their creative potential to be unlocked for their other activities which could then significantly raise their standard of living. This book discusses basic income by presenting the main arguments and experiments with basic income in Europe, the Americas, Africa, and Asia. Basic income offers the possibility of a major social and civilizational change for all.

“This is a radical, thought-provoking book, which brings together debates that are often kept separate about basic income and 'sovereign money'. You might not agree with all of it, but it makes big arguments and does so with constructive intent: that of proposing alternative ways of organising our economy and welfare states.” Nick Pearce, Director of The Institute for Policy Research, University of Bath, UK “Though I have criticized modern money theory (MMT) for being too facile regarding the consequences of money financed deficits, I welcome this book’s advocacy of a universal basic income. MMT proponents have focused on the problem of employment. Geoff Crocker wants to shift the focus to basic income, and I believe he is right. We are in an era of transition. Employment was the fundamental problem of the 20th century. Income distribution will be the fundamental problem of the 21st century. We must begin transitioning the policy discourse now. In coming decades we will need both employment and basic income policy. It is good to have MMT advocates on board.” Thomas Palley, independent economist, Washington, DC, USA "Geoff Crocker's book is a very stimulating and provoking contribution to the discussion of how to define, identify, and finance basic income. It addresses very clearly the societal issue of a monetary basic income funding which will excite the discussion beside well --known tax proposals, and establishes the discussion on integrating basic income directly into crisis prevention and crisis solution." Bernhard Neumärker, Götz Werner Professor of Economic Policy & Constitutional Economic Theory and Head of Freiburg Institute for Basic Income Studies (FRIBIS) at the University of Freiburg The current economic system is dysfunctional, characterised by crises, austerity, excessive household and government debt, low pay, poverty, inequality, and ecological damage. This needs a radical re-think and re-engineering of the economic system. The standard explanation of the 2007 economic crisis is that banks behaved badly and governments failed to regulate. But policies of tighter bank regulation, quantitative easing, and austerity failed, and proved counter-productive. This book challenges this orthodox view. From a careful analysis of long-term economic data, it shows that earned income has inexorably fallen behind economic output, leading to huge increases in consumer debt, causing the crisis. Governments have sought to curtail deficit spending by socially harmful austerity policy. The answer is a universal basic income, funded by debt-free sovereign money, which also funds government social expenditure, always limited by economic output to avoid inflation. This book will appeal to policy makers, academic economists, think tank networks, and everyone who is concerned with the ongoing dysfunctionality of the current economic system.