The Ontario government just announced a pilot project to test a basic income for low-income earners in Hamilton, Brantford, Lindsay and Thunder Bay. Participants will need to apply, and once accepted into the program they will be guaranteed an income of just under $17,000 a year, less 50 per cent of any income earned. Couples will earn around $24,000, less 50 per cent of earned household income.
Will the program be successful? I have no idea.
The answer will, in large part, depend on what will be measured. Proponents of basic income look beyond the primary goal of poverty reduction, listing many other benefits such as potentially higher education achievements, a reduction in governme…
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