Basic Income: What, Why, and How?. Exploring the Basic Income Guarantee
Abstract
This chapter is based on a working paper published in 2019 by the Institute for Social and Economic Research at the University of Essex. The last sections of the paper have been updated on the basis of working papers published in 2020 and 2021. The chapter summarises the results of microsimulation research on Basic Income schemes undertaken by this author during the past fifteen years and reflects on the journey taken by that research. The chapter explores the ways in which the contemporary policy context and constructive criticism of previous research projects have resulted in changes to the methods employed; discusses ways in which the research has influenced the policy process; and draws comparisons with the work of other microsimulation researchers. The increasingly lively debate on Basic Income has generated a wide variety of questions relating to Basic Income’s feasibility, and the penultimate section of the chapter addresses some of the most pressing of those questions. A final section draws lessons from the research journey recounted in the chapter and suggests avenues for future research.
