About Basic Income

The Australian Banksia Bottle Brush flower.
Photo courtesy of Penny Harrington

A Universal Basic Income (Basic Income Guarantee) is an unconditional cash payment to individuals sufficient to meet basic needs (Universal Basic Income New Zealand, 2003).

In its simplest form, Van Der Veen (1998) described Basic Income as a proposal ‘to disburse a tax-free subsistence income to every adult citizen, whether he or she is employed or unemployed, wealthy or poor, healthy or sick, active or idle, and…young or old, with basic incomes [including] children replacing existing child benefits’ (p. 141). From this page you can find descriptive articles on Basic Income, including:

• What is Basic Income?
• A short history of Basic Income in Australia and New Zealand
• Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ’s) on Basic Income