Politicians across parties welcome the launch of Wales’ Basic Income pilot
The Cross Party Parliamentary and Local Government Group (CPPLG) on Universal Basic Income joins our co-secretariat at the UBI Lab Network and Basic Income Conversation in celebrating today’s start of the Welsh Government’s basic income pilot involving care leavers.
The Basic Income pilot, which will be set at £1,600 a month, will assess the impact regular payments have in enhancing the support available to young people as they leave care, helping them achieve financial independence and stability for the future.
While it is not a Universal Basic Income (UBI), the pilot will test some of the most important values and principles of a UBI, and marks a significant step forwards for the movement.
Beth Winter, co-chair of the CPPLG on UBI and MP for Cynon Valley, tweeted back in February, “This is a bold & progressive approach, and will test key elements of the idea of a basic income, including unconditionality and regularity. This pilot represents a huge step in the right direction.”
The progress in Wales is a credit to the work of UBI Lab Wales, whose successful pledge campaign ahead of the Senedd elections last year led directly to the Welsh Government’s decision to launch a pilot.
This is the highest rate of Basic Income ever tested anywhere in the world. The CPPLG on UBI believes that any successful pilot must explore the impact a UBI would have on the most pressing structural problems that we face collectively.
We believe the results of this groundbreaking pilot will add to the growing evidence base around Universal Basic Income, and the benefits it could have for every one of us.
The end of pandemic measures has plunged people back into the unknown. The scrapping of the uplift to Universal Credit has stripped people of a much-needed £20 a week at a crucial time. The last few months have been saturated with news of the cost of living crisis, rising bills and prices that will leave people who are already spread thin at breaking point.
The Welsh Government taking bold steps to explore the idea of a basic income is perhaps the first hopeful news we’ve had in some time. We are working to make sure it is the first of many such stories.
About the CPPLG on UBI
The CPPLG on UBI aims to co-produce work that collectively advocates for policy positions, Basic Income pilots and the need to test alternatives to the current system, with a view to influencing the wider debate around UBI and social security in the UK.
This unique model aims to bring about positive change and improved ways of working between elected representatives across the UK.
The CPPLG on UBI consists of MPs, members of the devolved assemblies, local councillors, elected mayors, peers and LGA officers. It’s co-chaired by a cross-party group of MPs, peers and councillors, alongside a diverse membership of elected representatives. It’s supported with secretariat functions by the UBI Lab Network and the Basic Income Conversation.
