Andrew Coyne

The Globe and Mail

The concept of a basic income – combining several existing income and social supports into a single, income-tested but otherwise unconditional cash benefit – has been debated for more than 200 years.

It has drawn support, and criticism, from across the political spectrum, attacked or praised as either utopian socialism or minimal-state libertarianism. But has the whole debate just been settled?

You’d think so, to judge from some of the responses to the recent report of the British Columbia Expert Panel on Basic Income. It’s not hard to see why. The report’s authors are all highly regarded economists. 

The Daily Hive

Most Canadians support the concept of bringing in a universal basic income (UBI), but the majority also don’t want to pay for it.

A new study from the Angus Reid Institute found that, of the 1,510 Canadians who responded to the online survey between June 8 and 10, the majority support bringing in some form of UBI. Something similar has already been seen during the COVID-19 pandemic, as over seven million Canadians have been supported through the Canadian Emergency Response Benefit.