It was recently reported that Hawaii may be the first US state to introduce Universal Basic Income (UBI). Given that it’s generally a good idea to be deeply suspicious of anything that any capitalist government does, perhaps this piece of news is not quite as hopeful as it may appear.
The idea of UBI has been around for quite a long time. It is, for example, a core policy of the Green Party in England and Wales. The Greens call it “Citizens’ Income”, and propose that it should replace most forms of state benefit, and be payable to every citizen whether they are working or not. No doubt the intention behind it is good and worthy – that no one should ever be in poverty – but just throwing money at a problem is seldom the best way to solve it. The underlying reasons and nature of problems need to be addressed and remedied if they are really to be eradicated.
The heart of the problem that UBI is supposed to cure is poverty. But capitalism, the economic model which rules the planet, depends on carefully maintaining a proportion of humanity in abject poverty. There are several reasons for this.
Firstly, it establishes a permanent pool of cheap labour. Most people need money to survive. Employers provide money, in return for labour. When good jobs are scarce, as they usually are, many people struggle to find work and therefore obtain the money they need to survive. These people become desperate to feed themselves and their families, and will sell their…