Sapphire and I have a conversation about poverty and universal basic income. We talk about BC housing, accessibility, minimum wage in Vancouver, and more. Ultimately the middle class and wealthy folks who can afford it might say: move out of the city, but until there’s a grant that pays for moving costs to get out of the city, some can’t afford the disruption to income of having to find a new job, or just can’t afford to move which locks them into a cycle of poverty. Keep in mind that UBI could also provide one program to replace most of the social net bureaucratic costs associated with all of the various different programs like persons with disabilities, welfare, employment insurance, and many more. Instead of thinking of UBI being funded exclusively from public money, keep in mind that we pay an enormous amount into employment insurance. If current funding for welfare, PWD, and EI were to funnel into a joint UBI system, it wouldn’t be as expensive as it sounds at first. Anyways, neither of us is a financial expert, and if you’re interested in learning more, there is tons available on the benefits of UBI from google. Enjoy!
