We need to talk about a Universal Basic Income
Spoiler alert. If you are a selfish fuck who believes that money is and can be the only economic driver and can't see beyond cash, if you're someone who thinks that your rights and freedoms operate on an individual level and are not intertwined with those of others, if you know the cost of everything and the value of nothing and that you are happy with how things are, then you might not want to read this. The irony is, you'll suffer hardest when the whole house of cards falls.
As the old song from Cabaret said, Money makes the world go around. Would it be a surprise if I said to you that consumersism and even money itself are relatively new phenomena and did not really take off as a global transactional vehicle until the dawn of capitalism? Money has been around for a lot longer of course, but it was used for a lot less - it started with Empires a few thousand years ago but it only really took off when people started moving into cities and becoming less self-sufficient in the Industrial revolution, when we moved from an agrarian society to an industrial one. The idea of a none tied contract and a salary is even newer than and univesal banking is no more tha 50 years old. Your great-grandparents may have had a savings account but your grandmothers were the first generation of women to even be allowed to have a bank account of their own! Up until recently universal banking simply did not exist and very few working class people had a bank account until the late 1970's.
But there is a flaw in this system. Money only works as a lubricant to capitalism if everyone can have access to it and already this model is breaking down. The billionaire class hoarding wealth has seen to that. This means that in somewhere that is ultra capitalist, like the US, the richest nine people in the country own more wealth than the botton half who exist on subsistence wages or welfare, funelling their surplus capital as profit to the wealthy. This model was failing before the Introduction of AI but we are now seeing more and more jobs been taken away by automation. First it was the low paid factory jobs, then it was banking, now it is almost everything else - and the redundancies are accelerating. In China they now have dark factories with no staff. They are called dark factories because they no longer need to light them. This is coming to a country like yours soon, if it is not already here.
If there are no jobs then there is no way to earn money. if there is no way to earn money then there won't be surplus money in the economy to buy stuff and if stuff can't be bought then capitalism collapses. Capitalism was flawed by design and it needed poverty and an underclass to operate so an alternative to this would be welcomed by many, especially at the lower end of the earning spectrum. Something else needs to be found. An answer to this is UBI (Universal Basic Income).
Universal Basic Income (UBI) is a system where every individual receives a regular, unconditional payment from the government, regardless of their employment status. The idea is to provide financial security, reduce poverty, and adapt to a future where automation and AI are making traditional jobs obsolete.
It is not Communism, it is not utopian and it is not getting something for nothing. In this article, I will argue that UBI is not just a handout but a necessary step towards a post industrial working society. It’s been trialled successfully in places like Finland and Canada, proving that it improves wellbeing and even saves money on healthcare costs, creating a healthier and bettwe educated society that can use it's surplus time productively. I will also address funding, arguing that the super-rich should pay their fair share, and suggests that UBI should be accompanied by community service through a social compact to ensure it works for the community at large.
We are in late-stage capitalism. The current system is broken. Inequality is through the roof, we have the rise of authoritarian Government, wages are stagnating, and with AI and automation replacing jobs left, right, and centre, we're staring down the barrel of mass unemployment. Soon unemployment will not be addressable. If we don’t change course, we’re heading straight for a dystopian nightmare where a handful of billionaires own everything, while the rest of us scrabble to survive. That’s why UBI isn’t just a nice idea, it’s absolutely a necessity.
UBI isn’t some madcap socialist fantasy. It’s been tried and tested across the world, and everywhere where it has been trialled it has worked. In Finland, a two-year trial found that those receiving UBI were happier, healthier, and no less likely to work than those who weren’t. In Canada, a similar scheme in the 1970s virtually eradicated poverty in the trial area and saved a fortune in healthcare costs. Even in the UK, limited trials have shown that UBI boosts well-being and keeps people afloat when traditional safety nets fail. UBI also actively pulls people of out poverty and could feasibly eradicate poverty entirely. Where UBI has been trialled, it has shown that people are healthier, and their children are better educated. Why is this, because if you are healthier you are more productive and you have less chance of getting ill.
It's also beneficial for the NHS. At the moment few could question that the NHS is on its knees. It’s biggest drain is poverty. Poverty leads to stress, poor diet, worse living conditions, and increased mental and physical illness, all of which pile more and more pressure on the health service. Poverty is a political choice when we live in the 5th richest country in the world. Give people enough to live on, and suddenly they can afford decent food, heat their homes, and avoid the crippling anxiety that comes with never knowing if you can pay the next bill. That means fewer hospital visits, lower prescription costs, and less strain on GPs. In short, by tackling poverty at its root, UBI could save the NHS billions. The Tories, Reform UK and their billionaire mates love to claim that UBI is just free money for the lazy. What they don’t mention is that millions of people already do unpaid work, whether it’s looking after kids, caring for elderly relatives, or keeping communities going.
UBI isn’t a handout, it’s fair compensation for the essential work that capitalism refuses to pay for. Plus, with automation making more and more jobs redundant, the old ‘work for your bread’ model is crumbling. We can either let millions slide into poverty while a few tech barons hoard the wealth, or we can ensure that the benefits of automation are shared by everyone. UBI is the only way to make sure that technology serves humanity, not just the ultra-rich.
UBI isn’t about raising taxes on the little guy. It’s about making those who’ve hoarded obscene levels of wealth finally pay their fair share. Which is of course, why the establisment doesn't like it. A wealth tax, closing corporate loopholes, and taxing automation profits could easily fund a nationwide UBI. We’ve been told for decades that we ‘can’t afford’ decent public services, but funnily enough, there’s always enough money for bank bailouts, war, and MPs’ expenses. The money is there, it’s always been there, the trouble is we’ve allowed it to be just concentrated at the top. It’s time to spread it around.
One criticism of UBI is that it might encourage people to sit around doing nothing. But what if, in return for financial security, we all had to contribute something back to society? A few hours a week of community service, whether it’s helping in local schools, maintaining public spaces or assisting the elderly or even litterpicking and filling in potholes. This would ensure that society keeps functioning while giving people a sense of purpose. Unlike forced, exploitative DWP schemes, this would be a genuine social contribution, done in exchange for a dignified life, rather than just surviving hand-to-mouth. UBI isn’t just about putting a sticking plaster on the wounds of neoliberalism, it’s about ending the entire failed system. Late-stage capitalism has created grotesque inequality, destroyed communities, and reduced everything to a transaction. By introducing UBI, we take the first step towards a post-capitalist society where money stops being the sole measure of value. Ultimately, we should be looking towards demonetisation and a resource-based economy, a world where basic needs are met without the need for endless toil and exploitation.
If that sounds radical, remember that the alternative is an economic system where billionaires own everything while the rest of us fight over crumbs. Which future do you want?
UBI isn’t some utopian pipe dream: it’s the only realistic way forward. Without it, we’re looking at a future of mass unemployment, spiralling poverty, and a crumbling NHS. With it, we can create a fairer, healthier, and more sustainable society. The super-rich won’t like it – but frankly, they’ve had their turn. It’s time for the rest of us to take back control.
