Providing a basic income for all adults offers the best way to narrow the gap between rich and poor, according to a leading international economist.
However, the Government's approach to the introduction of a basic income has been negative, according to Dr Guy Standing, director of the socio-economic programme at the International Labour Organisation.
He said that while the Green Paper on the subject published earlier this month was a step in the right direction, it didn't address the huge problem of inequality in Irish society.
"Something must be done to make sure your extraordinary economic growth rates are translated into less poverty and greater security for all," he told a conference in Dublin yesterday.
The basic income would be an amount paid without conditions to each individual in the State, irrespective of personal circumstances. It would also be tax-free, though other income earned on top of it would be taxed.According to the Conference of Religious in Ireland, which has long championed the proposal, a basic income would remove poverty traps in the current system of welfare benefit by guaranteeing an income above the poverty line for everyone.
Dr Standing said it was an affordable proposal, in part through savings on the 10-15 per cent of the welfare budget currently spent on administration and means testing.
According to Father Seán Healy of CORI, the basic income could be introduced gradually over three years. It would encourage some people to move from the black economy into regular employment, because the payment would not be taxed.
A new book on the subject, The Basic Income Guarantee: Ensuring Progress and Prosperity in the 21st Century by ProfCharles Clark from New York, was launched at yesterday's seminar.
Prof Clark argues that globalisation and technological change offer the promise of increased prosperity but they have also brought greater inequality and social exclusion.
